Scholarships & funding · · 2 min read
Passing the annual review: how to keep a Chinese scholarship for four years
Almost every Chinese scholarship is renewed annually against performance criteria. Most terminations are avoidable.
Quick answer
What the review looks at
Typically: the number of credits completed in the year, the weighted average mark or GPA, class attendance, the supervisor's evaluation for research students, and compliance with visa and residence-permit rules. Some universities also require a minimum HSK level by a certain point in the programme.
Undergraduate scholarship holders who entered without sufficient Chinese must pass the preparatory language test at the end of their first year. Failing it terminates the scholarship — this is the single most common cause of lost funding.
How to stay safe
Read the scholarship terms you were issued on arrival and diarise every review date. Attend classes even when you think attendance is not recorded — it usually is. Keep your supervisor informed monthly if you are a research student. If you are struggling with a course, talk to the international student office early, when there is still time for a remedy.
If a review goes against you, there is normally an appeal window of a few weeks through the international office, and suspension is sometimes reversible on evidence of illness or other documented grounds.