Nature of the Exam
The English (II) exam is a selective, unified national entrance examination subject set up for colleges, universities, and research institutes to recruit professional degree postgraduates. Its purpose is to test candidates’ ability to use the English language in a scientific, fair, and effective manner. The evaluation standard is the passing level or above that a non-English-major undergraduate graduate can achieve, so as to ensure that admitted students have a certain level of English proficiency and to help colleges, universities, and research institutes select the best candidates in their respective disciplines.
Content Assessed
Candidates should master the following language knowledge and skills:
Language Knowledge
Grammar
Candidates should be able to skillfully apply basic grammatical knowledge, including:
(1) the formation and usage of the number and case of nouns and pronouns; (2) the formation and usage of verb tenses and voices; (3) the formation and usage of the comparative and superlative degrees of adjectives and adverbs; (4) the meanings and usage of commonly used conjunctions; (5) the formation and usage of non-finite verbs (infinitives, gerunds, participles); (6) the formation and usage of the subjunctive mood; (7) the structure and usage of various clauses (attributive clauses, subject clauses, predicative clauses, etc.) and emphatic sentence patterns; (8) the structure and usage of inversion and parenthetical expressions.
Vocabulary
Candidates should have a fairly proficient command of about 5,500 commonly used English words and related common phrases (see the relevant sections of the appendix for details). Candidates should be able to infer the meanings of some uncommon words based on the specific context, sentence structure, or surrounding text.
Language Skills
Reading
Candidates should be able to read and understand written materials of different subjects and genres. Subjects include economics, management, society, culture, popular science, etc.; genres include expository, argumentative, and narrative writing, etc.
Based on the reading materials, candidates should be able to:
(1) understand the main idea;
(2) understand specific information in the text;
(3) understand the structure of the discourse and the logical relationships in context;
(4) infer the meanings of important unfamiliar words or phrases from the context;
(5) make certain judgments and inferences;
(6) understand the author’s intention, viewpoint, or attitude.
Writing
Candidates should be able to complete short essays according to the given outline, scenario, or requirements. The essay should have a clear central idea, stay on topic, have a clear structure and logical organization, use appropriate wording, and contain no obvious language errors.
Exam Format, Content, and Paper Structure
Exam Format
The exam is a written test. The exam lasts 180 minutes. The full score is 100 points.
The paper includes a test booklet and one answer sheet. Candidates should mark their answers for the Use of English and Reading Comprehension sections on the answer sheet by filling in the options corresponding to the question numbers as required, and write their answers for the English-to-Chinese Translation and Writing sections within the bordered areas at the designated positions on the answer sheet.
Paper Structure
The test consists of four parts, 48 questions in total, covering Use of English, Reading Comprehension, English-to-Chinese Translation, and Writing.
Part I: Use of English
This part mainly tests candidates’ comprehensive ability to use English knowledge. There are 20 questions, 0.5 points each, 10 points in total.
Twenty blanks are left in a passage of about 350 words. Candidates are required to choose the best answer from the 4 options given for each question, so that the completed passage is coherent in meaning, logically connected, and structurally complete.
Part II: Reading Comprehension
This part mainly tests candidates’ ability to obtain information, understand passages, guess the meanings of important unfamiliar words, and make inferences. It consists of two sections, A and B, with 25 questions in total, 2 points each, 50 points in total. Section A (20 questions)
This section consists of multiple-choice questions. There are four passages with a total length of about 1,500 words. Candidates are required to read the passages and answer the questions after each passage. For each question, candidates need to choose the only correct or the most appropriate answer from the options provided (A, B, C, D).
Each passage has 5 questions, 20 questions in total. Each question is worth 2 points, 40 points in total. Section B (5 questions)
This section has two alternative question types. In each exam, one of the two types, or a combination of both, is selected for assessment.
This section has 5 questions based on the passage, 2 points each, 10 points in total.
The alternative question types include:
- Multiple Matching
This section features a passage of 450–550 words. The test content is divided into two columns: the left column contains 5 questions, and the right column contains 7 options. After reading, candidates are required to choose the 5 corresponding pieces of relevant information from the 7 options in the right column, based on the passage content and the information provided in the left column.
- Heading Matching
Before a passage of 450–550 words, there are 7 summary sentences or subheadings. These sentences or headings summarize or elaborate on a certain part of the passage. Candidates are required to choose the 5 most appropriate summary sentences or subheadings from the 7 options to fill in the blanks in the passage, based on the passage content and discourse structure.
Part III: English-to-Chinese Translation
This part tests candidates’ ability to understand the given English-language material and translate it into Chinese. The translation should be accurate, complete, and fluent.
Candidates are required to read and understand one or several English paragraphs of about 150 words in total, and translate all of them into Chinese. 15 points in total.
Part IV: Writing
This part consists of two sections, A and B, and mainly tests candidates’ written expression ability. 2 questions in total, 25 points. Section A
Candidates write a practical short essay of about 100 words (punctuation not counted) based on the given scenario, including personal and business letters, memos, reports, etc. 10 points in total. Section B
Candidates are required to write an English expository or argumentative essay of about 150 words based on the prescribed scenario or the given outline. The scenario is provided in the form of a picture, a chart, or text. 15 points in total.
Differences Between English I and English II
Different Applicable Majors
Majors that only use English I Academic master’s degrees: all academic master’s programs (across all thirteen discipline categories). For other foreign languages, second foreign languages for foreign language and literature majors, and foreign languages for separate examinations, the recruiting institution may set its own independently designed subjects or use the national unified examination subjects.
Professional master’s degrees: 10 categories of professional master’s programs, including Clinical Medicine (1051), Stomatology (1052), and Public Health (1053). Majors that only use English II
Academic master’s degrees: none
Professional master’s degrees: 7 categories of professional master’s programs, including Business Administration (1251), Public Administration (1251), and Accounting (1253). Majors that may choose English I or English II
Academic master’s degrees: none
Professional master’s degrees: 30 categories of professional master’s programs, including Finance (0251), Applied Statistics (0252), and Taxation (0253). Majors that use neither English I nor English II
Academic master’s degrees: none
Professional master’s degrees: Translation and Interpreting (0551)
Different Reading Subjects
English I has no explicit restrictions on subjects and genres, while English II requires candidates to be able to read and understand written materials of different subjects and genres — subjects include economics, management, society, culture, popular science, etc., and genres include expository, argumentative, and narrative writing, etc.
Different Levels of Difficulty
English I and English II differ in the depth at which they test candidates’ mastery of vocabulary and grammar.
The syllabi of English I and English II specify the same vocabulary range. English II requires candidates to have a fairly proficient command of about 5,500 commonly used English words and related common phrases. In addition to meeting the requirements of English II, English I also requires candidates to master the semantic relationships between words and the basic knowledge of word formation.
The English II syllabus specifies a total of eight grammar points, while the English I syllabus’s provisions on grammar are more conceptual and do not specifically list detailed requirements for grammatical knowledge, so the scope of grammar review is broader and the workload is heavier.
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