Our courses

Levels and modules

The Mandarin courses offered by the Confucius Institute at UNICAMP are organized into three levels: Basic, Intermediate and Advanced. Each level is subdivided into modules lasting one academic semester. The content covered in the courses is not only aimed at developing the student's language skills – listening, speaking, reading and writing – but also preparing for the Chinese language proficiency test (HSK). Upon completing the entire curriculum offered, with a total duration of 8 years, the student will be able to pass HSK level 6. Students will also learn about the culture and history of China in an integrated way.

Note: Mandarin classes require instrumental use of English, as some Chinese teachers are not proficient in Portuguese.

Our courses	Duration	Recommended HSK test
Basic Mandarin – Module I	1 semesters	HSK 1
Basic Mandarin – Module II	1 semesters	HSK 1 or HSK 2
Basic Mandarin – Module III	1 semesters	HSK 2
Basic Mandarin – Module IV	1 semesters	HSK 2 or HSK 3
Basic Mandarin – Module V	1 semesters	HSK 3
Intermediate Mandarin – Module I	1 semesters	HSK 3
Intermediate Mandarin – Module II	1 semesters	HSK 3 or HSK 4
Intermediate Mandarin – Module III	1 semesters	HSK 3 or HSK 4
Intermediate Mandarin – Module IV	1 semesters	HSK 4
Intermediate Mandarin – Module V	1 semesters	HSK 4
Intermediate Mandarin – Module VI	1 semesters	HSK 4
Advanced Mandarin – Module I	1 semesters	HSK 4 or HSK 5
Advanced Mandarin – Module II	1 semesters	HSK 5
Advanced Mandarin – Module III	1 semesters	HSK 5
Advanced Mandarin – Module IV	1 semesters	HSK 5

Basic Mandarin – Module I

Objective: The student will learn how to greet, ask about work and study using common expressions, in addition to acquiring knowledge of basic Mandarin grammar, Chinese culture and customs.
Menu: Learn how to ask for basic information in everyday life, as well as how to introduce yourself to other people. Learn the pronunciation variations of the negation “Bù/Bú”; vocabulary: “Shì”, “Búshì”, “Háishì”, “Wǒ”, “Nǐ”, “Nín”, “Tā”, “Xìng”, “Míngzi”, “Ma”; key sentences: “Shì bú shì” and subject + verb + object.
Material: Contemporary Chinese Lessons 1-4

Basic Mandarin – Module II

Objective: The student will learn to greet, ask about work and study using common expressions, in addition to acquiring knowledge of basic Mandarin grammar, Chinese culture and customs.
Menu: Learn to talk about everyday situations using common Chinese expressions. Learn how to complain or apologize, how to greet one person on behalf of another, and how to ask questions about a third person.
Material: Contemporary Chinese Lessons 5-8

Basic Mandarin – Module III

Objective: The student will master the fundamental sentences of the Chinese language and basic elements of grammatical structure, in addition to deepening their knowledge of Chinese culture and customs.
Menu: Learn and practice Chinese language sentences and patterns. Expand and deepen students' understanding of Chinese lexicon. Learn new characters and their radicals, as well as learn compound characters.
Material: Contemporary Chinese Lessons 9-12

Basic Mandarin – Module IV

Objective: Students will learn and practice intermediate sentences in the Chinese language. They will master intermediate elements of Mandarin grammatical structure, as well as deepen their knowledge of Chinese culture and customs. In addition, students will learn to write more ideograms and master 500 new words.
Menu: Learn sentences using modal complements of time, direction, quantity and completion, sentences with new action verbs, how to create sentences with the particles “le” and “ba”, and how to construct comparison sentences.
Material: Contemporary Chinese Lessons 13-16

Basic Mandarin – Module V

Objective: Acquire everyday communication skills, learn the grammar of compound sentences and verbal complements, as well as expressions with specific structures. Deepen cultural knowledge about China.
Menu: Acquire everyday vocabulary consisting of 800 words, so that the student masters intermediate communication skills, using compound sentences and specific Mandarin structures.
Material: Contemporary Chinese Lessons 17-20

Intermediate Mandarin – Module I

Intermediate Mandarin – Module II

Objective: Students will master approximately 1500 words, and will be able to pass the HSK proficiency exam. Students will also be able to speak at an intermediate level, achieving fluency.
Menu: Deepen knowledge of Mandarin, especially related to cultural expression, cuisine, etc., so that the student has increasingly better communication skills in the Chinese world.
Material: New Practical Chinese Reader 3 Lessons 31-34

Intermediate Mandarin – Module III

Objective: Students will master approximately 2500 words, historical-cultural expressions (chengyu), and more elaborate and complex grammatical topics.
Menu: Building on the grammar and vocabulary covered in Intermediate Mandarin – Module II, in this module students will master 2500 words in Mandarin and learn new grammatical structures that enhance oral communication skills. In addition, they will learn expressions related to Chinese economy, culture and life, for a better understanding of the Chinese linguistic world.
Material: New Practical Chinese Reader 3 Lessons 35-38

Intermediate Mandarin – Module IV

Objective: By the end of the course, students will be able to communicate on topics such as love and marriage, gender equality, career planning, Chinese festivals and customs, neighborhood relations, literati and literary works, negotiation, as well as understand the West-East contrasts, the history and status quo of women in China, the attitudes and reasons of Chinese people towards different professions, major Chinese writers and literary works, concepts related to Chinese consumption and business.
Menu: Based on the grammar and vocabulary learned in Intermediate Mandarin – Module III, as well as the indicated bibliography, in this module students will learn around 240 new words and 45 grammatical points aiming to improve listening comprehension and oral expression on topics such as: expressing need, praising and responding to praise, complaining and giving explanations, interviewing people, making speeches, rhetorical questions and expressing sudden understanding, regret, doubt and disbelief.
Material: New Practical Chinese Reader 4 Lessons 39-44

Intermediate Mandarin – Module V

Objective: By the end of the course, students will be able to present papers on topics such as the hunting of Chinese university students, the great dedication of Chinese children to their studies, changes in the Chinese people's views on education, changes in the structure of the Chinese family, theories on traditional Chinese medicine and the names of China's space programs.
Menu: Based on the grammar and vocabulary learned in Intermediate Mandarin – Module IV, as well as the indicated bibliography, in this module students will learn around 350 new words and 42 grammatical points aiming to improve listening comprehension and oral expression on topics such as: expressing satisfaction, applying for a job, complaining about something, making a promise, expressing uncertainty, explaining a reason, making estimates and persuading or dissuading someone.
Material: New Practical Chinese Reader 4 Lessons 45-50

Intermediate Mandarin – Module VI

Objective: At the end of the course, students will be able to communicate on topics such as: Chinese people's opinions and expectations about education and work, the relationship between Chinese and Western work culture, understanding changes throughout history in the way Chinese people raise their children, as well as discussing cultural distinctions from the past and present between the West and China.
Menu: Based on the grammar and vocabulary learned at the Intermediate Mandarin level – Module V, as well as the indicated bibliography, in this module students will learn around 250 new words and 20 grammatical points aiming to improve listening comprehension and oral expression on topics such as: creating complex narratives, expressing desires, making oral and written summaries of complex situations, as well as detailing/fabulating about apparently simple situations.

Advanced Mandarin – Module I

Objective: By the end of the course, students will be able to communicate on topics such as the love between Chinese parents and children, understand the love between men and women, understand the culture related to Chinese food, wine and tea, understand the feelings of Chinese people towards their hometown, alma mater and other special places, as well as understand the different lifestyles and differences between the East and the West.
Menu: Based on the grammar and vocabulary learned in Intermediate Mandarin – Module VI, as well as the indicated bibliography, in this module students will learn about 325 new words and 50 language points, aiming to master the relationship of general juxtaposition, cause and effect, turning point, succession, purpose, etc. Topics developed: “love of parents and children”, “love of husband and wife”, “kitchen, tea and wine”, “a meaningful place” and “lifestyle”.
Material: Developing Chinese Advanced Comprehensive Course 1 Lessons 1-5

Advanced Mandarin – Module II

Objective: By the end of the course, students will be able to deepen their knowledge of some Chinese celebrities, understand Chinese literary works, cultural landmarks, myths, legends, poems and dramas, as well as understand the relationship between parents and children in Chinese families.
Menu: Based on the grammar and vocabulary learned in the Advanced Mandarin – Module I level, as well as the recommended bibliography, in this module students will learn about 325 new words and 50 language points aimed at mastering the relationship between concessions, transitions, progressions and inferences. Topics covered: “celebrities”, “equality between men and women and family life”, “Chinese classics and parent-child relationships”, “love between men and women” and “myths”.
Material: Developing Chinese Advanced Comprehensive Course 1 Lessons 6-10

Advanced Mandarin – Module III

Objective: By the end of the course, students will be able to communicate on topics such as the perspectives of Chinese teachers and students, understand the development of scientific and technological products in China in recent years, as well as understand the opinions of the Chinese people on the different stages of family life taking into account the differences between East and West.
Menu: Based on the grammar and vocabulary learned in Advanced Mandarin – Module II, as well as the indicated bibliography, in this module students will learn about 680 new words and 55 new language points, aiming to understand cause and effect relationships, syntactic inversions and more complex assumptions, etc. Topics developed: “Chinese-style teacher and student development”, “electrical product development”, “Chinese wine culture”, “Chinese prose and cultural performance in drama” and “different stages of life”.
Material: Developing Chinese Advanced Comprehensive Course 1 Lessons 11-15

Advanced Mandarin – Module IV

Objective: At the end of the course, students will be able to communicate on the topics developed, as well as understand the different perspectives between the West and the East in relation to each of them.
Menu: Based on the grammar and vocabulary learned in Advanced Mandarin – Module III, as well as the bibliography indicated, in this module students will learn about 750 new words and 65 new language points, aiming to master the relationship of limited selection, conditional assumptions and selective hypothetical relationships. Topics developed: “Chinese name culture”, “the meaning of window”, “environmental protection”, “mother’s love for her children” and “preservation of traditional buildings in view of economic development”.
Material: Developing Chinese Advanced Comprehensive Course 2 Lessons 1-5

Timetables

Course offering times are organized as follows:

Timetable	Modality	Local News
Meio-dia From 12 to 13 2 classes per week	In‑person	IE/Unicamp or FCA/Limeira classrooms
Night 18h30 at 20h 2 classes per week	Online	Virtual room, Zoom platform
Saturday 8h30 at 12h 1 class per week	Online	Virtual room, Zoom platform

Values

Each semester module has a full value of R$600,00. Payment can be made in up to 3 installments via bank slip. People who have an active connection with Unicamp can receive a 90% discount on this amount upon presentation of proof of connection (Certificate of enrollment for students or copy of functional identity for employees).

Registrations

Please visit our registration page and, if you have any questions, read our frequently asked questions.