Chinese

What do you come out with? A BA, which you can either do as a single honours or combined with one or more modern languages. Most places send you on a year abroad; although you don’t have to if you study Tibetan at The School of Oriental and African Studies, in London (SOAS). Edinburgh offers an MA, but says it is equivalent to an English BA. Nottingham also offers a four-year MA in the business and economy of Contemporary China.

Why do it? China is a fascinating country with a rich history. Its economic might is already indisputable; so it’s probably not a bad idea to learn how to say “please hire me!” in Chinese. Also, if you want to get into diplomatic, international business or media work, it will be a skill that sets you apart from the pack. Some students come into it through martial arts, while others are interested in Buddhism and Tibet. Some have already done another language and got bored of it; some went on a gap year and got hooked on China.

What's it about? At Sheffield there is a 50:50 split between language and courses focusing on modern China. Students spend their second year abroad in Nanjing. During the third year they might take a research module and they can specialise and go further back into China’s history in the final year.

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Language takes up a large part of the curriculum at Newcastle. Dr Elisabeth Andersen says: “We remind students of what the Foreign Office says: it takes six months to pick up a European language, but two years for Chinese.” The year abroad is in third year; but if you are doing single honours Chinese and have language experience, you will go to China in your second year. Students are sent to a range of places including Beijing and Shanghai. Newcastle also runs modules in Chinese cultural studies, including Chinese cinema, as well as modules in the history and the politics of the area.

SOAS covers modern and classical Chinese, and its Tibetan course is the only one of its kind in Europe. It offers an introduction to the cultural history of Tibet and can be combined with study of Buddhism in their religious studies department.

In the first year at Nottingham, you take core modules on aspects of contemporary China and the Mandarin language from beginners' level. You spend your second year at the university’s Ningbo campus in China. Unlike the year abroad in most four-year Chinese degrees, here all your work will count towards your final degree result. You will again take core modules on contemporary China, this time with an emphasis on training in research methods. In your final year you write a 10,000-word dissertation on a China-related topic of your choice.

During the first two years at Edinburgh the students attend language courses together with courses on modern Chinese society and culture as well as outlining Chinese history from earliest times to the present day. Third year is the year abroad and is spent studying at a Chinese university. The fourth year focuses on primary sources, with courses covering key notions of classical philosophy and literature.

How long is a degree? Four years, with a compulsory year abroad at most places. Nottingham’s BA course is just three years including the year abroad, whereas their MA is four years long.

What are the students like? Students have an interest in China (obviously), its historical contribution to civilisation and its future world domination. If you don’t speak Mandarin (as most students don’t), you will also need to have an aptitude for languages and steely determination. “I think the main characteristic is a great curiosity,” says Dr Marjorie Dryburgh at Sheffield, “Students want to look beyond what they have learned at school, they want to expand their horizons and they have a degree of inquisitiveness. They’re not all students who considered doing a language at university originally, but it’s the pull of China that drove them to it.” There’s roughly a 50:50 male/female split at most places, although Nottingham’s business and economics course attracts more men.

How is it packaged? At Sheffield and Edinburgh it’s about 50:50 exams to coursework but can go up to 70:30 each way depending on your choices. SOAS has a roughly 75:25 exam to coursework mix, whereas it’s 60:40 at Nottingham.

How cool is it? Being able to talk and write an Oriental language is pretty cool.

What A-levels do you need? Prior knowledge of Mandarin is not a requirement, but if you do have a little (or even a lot of) know-how, universities will make an effort to accommodate you. Sheffield doesn’t require a language at A-level; Newcastle does if you want to do the modern languages course, but not for single honours Chinese. At Nottingham social sciences or humanities at A-level and evidence of ability in modern languages are preferred.

What grades? Sheffield asks for BBC, whereas it’s BBB for Nottingham and Edinburgh (or BBBB in Scottish Highers). Newcastle wants ABB with an A in one language at A-level if you are doing the modern languages course. SOAS wants to see AAB for Chinese and ABB for Tibetan.

Will you be interviewed? Not at Edinburgh, Sheffield or Newcastle and not usually at SOAS or Nottingham.

Will it keep you off the dole? Yes, but you may have to go abroad to make the most of it. Cambridge boasts an 80 per cent graduate employment rate after six months, but other places aren’t quite as successful. Sheffield and SOAS both have a 70 per cent employment rate, followed by Oxford and Edinburgh with 65 per cent. There is a range of opportunities; you get what you would out of a history or geography degree, but with the added Chinese edge. From Sheffield people go into management consultancy, cultural exchange, arts administration or language-related fields like translation and interpretation. Former grads from Newcastle have gone onto a range of careers, including journalist for Reuters in Beijing, interpreter for the chef Gary Rhodes during a six-week tour of China and one even ended up acting in Chinese films. Students from Nottingham have a strong tendency to go back to China and will do pretty much anything to get back there: a lot go onto further study, but some go into journalism and the media, some work for NGOs and some go into management.

What do students say? Stewart Randall, 21, BA Chinese studies and management, Sheffield, "Languages were my worst subject at school, but after a year studying computers at sixth form college, I decided to do something completely different. Chinese attracted me because it was different and despite being an ancient language it seemed like a language for the future. My course at Sheffield has been so much fun, and has helped me to realise my own abilities. The help I got from staff was second to none and the social scene is extremely varied and exciting. The year in Nanjing was probably the best year of my life and a huge learning curve. The course has helped me gain a Chinese government scholarship to do a Masters in China and I hope to work there in the future."

Where's the best for teaching? For East and South Asian studies, Cambridge came top of the 2009 National Student Survey with 4.38. Oxford came second with 3.92, closely followed by Cardiff on 3.89.

Where's the best for research? For East and South Asian studies, Cardiff scored 3.00 in the 2009 Research Assessment Exercise, which put them top, ahead of SOAS on 2.75

Where's the cutting edge? Sheffield and Nottingham both have a very strong focus on contemporary studies. The emphasis on cultural studies is distinctive for Newcastle and they are launching a new MA in East Asian history. SOAS is very proud of its unique Tibetan course, but also the flexibility of its Chinese course, as you can start at beginner, intermediate or advanced.

Who are the stars? At Sheffield, the head of department is Professor Xiaowei Zang, who is a specialist in ethnicity, and Professor Christopher Bramall is a former adviser to the Vietnamese government. At SOAS, Professor Michel Hockx is big on modern Chinese literature, and for classical Chinese philosophy, Professor Bernhard Fuehrer is your man. Professor Yao Shujie at Nottingham is the eighth most eminent economist working on China today.