Degree education: the four categories of degree-seeking international students
Unofficial entry · Sources checked
Under Article 9 of the Measures for the Administration of Schools Recruiting and Educating International Students (Order No. 42 of the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Public Security), degree education (学历教育) is the category of study that covers specialist, undergraduate, master's and doctoral students. Non-degree education, in the same article, covers preparatory students, visiting students and research scholars. Related entries on degree programmes are under Universities and degrees.
Definition
Article 9 of Order No. 42 sets out two groups. The degree-education categories are:
- specialist students (专科生)
- undergraduate students (本科生)
- master's degree students (硕士研究生)
- doctoral students (博士研究生)
The non-degree-education categories are preparatory students (预科生), visiting students (进修生) and research scholars (研究学者).
The article text is printed in Chinese. The English wording here is this site's own translation of the Chinese text.
What the official text says
Order No. 42, Article 16. International students shall take courses according to the curriculum and teaching plan of the higher education institution. They shall take the corresponding graduation examinations or assessments as required by regulations. The school shall record their academic results and daily performance truthfully.
Article 16 also states two compulsory-course rules:
- Chinese language and General Overview of China (中国概况) shall be compulsory courses for higher degree education.
- Political theory shall be a compulsory course for international students majoring in philosophy or political science.
Order No. 42, Article 21. Higher education institutions issue degree certificates or other academic certificates to international students in accordance with relevant national regulations. For international students in higher degree education, the institution shall promptly complete electronic registration of student status and graduation certificates. Institutions shall issue degree certificates to international students who meet the conditions for conferring a degree.
Degree Law of the People's Republic of China, Article 2. The state implements a degree system. Degrees are divided into bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. They include academic degrees and professional degrees, and are conferred by discipline category, professional degree category and other categories.
The Degree Law text is also printed in Chinese, and the English wording here is this site's own translation.
Related terms
- Non-degree education categories: preparatory students, visiting students and research scholars (Order No. 42, Article 9)
- Academic degree and professional degree (Degree Law, Article 2)
- Degree certificate and other academic certificate (Order No. 42, Article 21)
- Chinese language and General Overview of China, compulsory courses (Order No. 42, Article 16)
- Political theory, compulsory course for philosophy and political science majors (Order No. 42, Article 16)
Sources
- Measures for the Administration of Schools Recruiting and Educating International Students (Order No. 42), Ministry of Education of the PRC
- Degree Law of the People's Republic of China, Ministry of Education of the PRC
Checked 11 October 2026.
This entry is an unofficial summary and is not legal or immigration advice. It is not published by the bodies named. If the official text or the instructions of the body handling your case differ from this entry, the official text and those instructions prevail.