Applicants Requirements – CUHK Graduate School

Requirements

Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the University accepts, on a temporary basis and for those students who are admitted to postgraduate programmes in the 2021-22 intake, the following online English tests as an alternative to fulfil the University’s English Language Requirements.

- TOEFL-iBT Home Edition Overall 79

- IELTS Indicator: Overall 6.5

- GMAT Online Examination: Band 21 (Verbal)

Some programmes may stipulate additional English Language requirements for admissions. For more information, please refer to the individual programme pages.

Applicants are required to fulfil the General Admissions Requirements, English Language Requirements for Admission and Programme-Specific Admissions Requirements (if any).

General Admissions Requirements

For the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Doctor of Education (D.Ed.), Doctor of Music (D.Mus.), Doctor of Nursing (D.Nur.), Doctor of Psychology (D.Psy.) Programmes, the applicant shall have:

a master's degree obtained from a recognized university; or
a bachelor's degree, normally with Second Class Honours in the upper division or above, and have been registered in a course of study for a master's degree at this University for at least one year and have demonstrated research ability; or
been registered in a course of study for a doctoral degree at a recognized university for at least one year, and have been approved for admission by the Graduate Council; or
obtained the degrees of M.B., Ch.B., or equivalent, or under special circumstances, the degree of bachelor, for admission to programmes of the Faculty of Medicine.

For the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) stream under the "M.Phil.-Ph.D. Programmes", the applicant shall have:

a master's degree from a recognized university; or
graduated from a recognized university and obtained a bachelor's degree, normally with honours not lower than Second Class; or
graduated from an honours programme of a recognized university with a bachelor's degree, normally achieving an average grade of not lower than "B"; or
completed a course of study in a tertiary educational institution and obtained professional or similar qualifications equivalent to an honours degree.

For a master's programmes (other than the Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) Programme), the applicant shall have:

graduated from a recognized university and obtained a bachelor's degree, normally with honours not lower than Second Class; or
graduated from an honours programme of a recognized university with a bachelor's degree, normally achieving an average grade of not lower than "B"; or
completed a course of study in a tertiary educational institution and obtained professional or similar qualifications equivalent to an honours degree.

For the Juris Doctor (JD) Programme, the applicant shall have:

graduated from a recognized university and obtained a bachelor's degree in a non-law subject or a law degree from a non-common law jurisdiction, normally with honours not lower than Second Class; or
graduated from an honours programme of a recognized university with a bachelor's degree in a non-law subject or a law degree from a non-common law jurisdiction, normally achieving an average grade of not lower than "B"; or
completed a course of study in a tertiary educational institution and obtained professional or similar qualifications equivalent to an honours degree.

For the Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) Programme, the applicant shall have:

obtained a bachelor's degree or professional qualifications equivalent to a degree.

For a Postgraduate Diploma Programme, the applicant shall have:

graduated from a recognized university and obtained a bachelor's degree.

English Language Requirements for Admission

To fulfill the University’s minimum English language requirements for admission to postgraduate programmes, applicants should have:

obtained a degree from a university in Hong Kong¹ or taken a degree programme of which the medium of instruction was English; or
achieved scores in the following English Language tests²as indicated:
1. TOEFL: 550 (Paper-based)/79 (Internet-based);
2. IELTS (Academic): 6.5;
3. GMAT: Band 21 (Verbal); or
obtained a pass grade in English in one of the following examinations:
1. Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination (AS Level);
2. Hong Kong Higher Level Examination;
3. CUHK Matriculation Examination;
4. General Certificate of Education Examination (GCE) Advanced Level (A-Level)/Advanced Subsidiary Level (AS-Level); or
achieved Level 4 or above in the English Language subject of the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) Examination; or
obtained a recognized professional qualification, provided that the examination was conducted in English.

Notes:

This is based on the understanding that English is the medium of instruction of degree programmes offered by universities in Hong Kong. Moreover, graduates from universities in Hong Kong should have fulfilled the English language requirements of the institution concerned when they were admitted to the degree programmes. The CUHK Graduate School may request applicants to provide additional supporting documents to prove their English proficiency.
TOEFL and IELTS are considered valid for two years from the test date. GMAT is considered valid for five years from the test date.

Programme-Specific Admissions Requirements

Some programmes may stipulate additional requirements for admission. For more information on the programme-specific admissions requirements, please refer to the individual programme pages.

Note:

Applicants with degrees awarded by overseas universities by distance learning or by completing a curriculum of short duration may be required to provide assessment reports from the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ) on the level of qualification obtained.