CSCA Syllabus 2026–2027: All 5 Papers, Topics and PDF Checklists

Five Papers, Five Syllabuses

The CSCA has five papers, each with its own official syllabus (2025 edition). You sit only the ones your programme asks for. Every paper is single-answer multiple choice and marked out of 100.

Paper	Language	Time	Questions	The syllabus has	Topic by topic
Mathematics	Chinese or English	60 min	48	4 modules	Maths syllabus
Physics	Chinese or English	60 min	48	5 modules	Physics syllabus
Chemistry	Chinese or English	60 min	48	4 modules	Chemistry syllabus
Humanities Chinese	Chinese	90 min	80	6 question types	Chinese syllabus
STEM Chinese	Chinese	90 min	80	6 question types	Chinese syllabus

Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry are sat without a calculator. For the papers offered in two languages, the university you apply to decides which one it accepts.

Free PDF checklists, one page for each subject, to print or keep on your phone: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Professional Chinese. Each has the paper's format and every topic with a box to tick. They are our own study lists, arranged by the modules of the syllabus, not the official syllabus.

Mathematics: 4 Modules

1. Sets and Inequalities: sets, their operations and notation; solving inequalities, including quadratic and rational ones.
2. Functions: domain, range, monotonicity and parity; power, exponential, logarithmic and trigonometric functions; arithmetic and geometric sequences; the basics of derivatives.
3. Geometry and Algebra: lines, circles, ellipses, hyperbolas and parabolas; vectors and complex numbers; coordinates in space and simple solids.
4. Probability and Statistics: classical probability; mean and variance; the basic ideas of the normal distribution.

Every topic, with what lies beyond the syllabus: CSCA Mathematics syllabus. Free course: Sets & Inequalities, Functions, Geometry & Trigonometry, Calculus & Statistics.

To print: CSCA Mathematics syllabus checklist (PDF).

Physics: 5 Modules

1. Mechanics: motion, forces and Newton's laws, work and energy, momentum, circular motion and gravitation, vibrations and waves.
2. Electromagnetism: electrostatics, DC circuits, magnetic fields and electromagnetic induction.
3. Thermodynamics: the kinetic theory of gases, the ideal gas equation and the first law.
4. Optics: the laws of reflection and refraction; interference and diffraction.
5. Modern Physics: the photoelectric effect, atomic structure and the basics of nuclear physics.

Every topic: CSCA Physics syllabus. Free course: Mechanics, Electromagnetism, Thermodynamics, Optics & Waves, Modern Physics.

To print: CSCA Physics syllabus checklist (PDF).

Chemistry: 4 Modules

1. Basic Chemical Concepts and Calculations: classifying matter and changes of state, notation and equations, solution concentration and pH, the amount of substance, the ideal gas law.
2. Properties and Reactions of Substances: common inorganic substances, hydrocarbons and their derivatives, redox reactions, ionic reactions and tests.
3. Chemical Theories and Laws: atomic structure and the periodic law, bonding and intermolecular forces, rate and equilibrium, electrolyte solutions.
4. Chemical Experiments and Applications: lab safety and apparatus, preparing and identifying gases, separation and purification, industrial processes such as ammonia synthesis.

Every topic: CSCA Chemistry syllabus. Free course: Atomic Structure, Chemical Reactions, Organic Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, Experiments & Applications.

To print: CSCA Chemistry syllabus checklist (PDF).

Professional Chinese: 2 Streams, 6 Question Types

Professional Chinese is sat as Humanities Chinese (文科中文) or STEM Chinese (理科中文), whichever your programme requires. Both use the same six single-choice question types: 识解汉字 (characters), 选词填空 (fill the gap), 辨析词语 (telling words apart), 选词成段 (completing a paragraph), 补全语句 (completing a sentence) and 阅读理解 (reading).

• Humanities Chinese draws its texts from literature, philosophy, law, education, history, art and other humanities.
• STEM Chinese draws them from mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing: symbols and formulae, laws and equations, lab work, charts and academic reading.

Both streams in detail: CSCA Professional Chinese syllabus. Choosing between them: Humanities Chinese or STEM Chinese?

To print: CSCA Professional Chinese syllabus checklist (PDF).

The Official Syllabus and Sample Questions

The official documents are on csca.cn, under Test Prep. Each of the five papers has an Examination Syllabus there. In November 2026 the page also offered sample questions to download for Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry, and none yet for the two Chinese papers. No past papers have been released.

The syllabus belongs to the China Scholarship Council and carries a notice that it may not be republished without its authorisation. That is why this page summarises it in our own words and sends you to csca.cn for the document itself. How to find your way around the official site: our guide to csca.cn.

Which Papers Do You Need?

• Mathematics: required of every applicant.
• Professional Chinese: required for Chinese-taught programmes and listed as required for Chinese Government Scholarship applicants; the stream follows your major.
• Physics and Chemistry: optional papers that your university may require. Science, engineering, agriculture and medicine applicants usually need at least one of them.

The university's own admission page has the final word. Our university pages give the likely subjects for 50 universities, and What is the CSCA? explains the rules in full.

Turning a Syllabus into a Plan

1. Tick what you already know. Go down the checklist and mark each topic honestly: known, shaky or new.
2. Test, do not guess. A timed mock paper shows which of your ticks were optimistic.
3. Give the time to the shaky topics first. They move your score fastest. The one-month study plan shows how to spread the work.
4. Fix your date. The exam calendar has every sitting to June 2027, and registration can close more than three weeks before a sitting.