The CSC Application Document Checklist

Most CSC applications fail for a boring reason: a missing or incorrectly formatted document, discovered with days left on the clock. The paperwork itself isn't complicated, but it does need to be assembled in the right order, in the right format, well before the deadline.

Start with your identity documents. You'll need a clear scanned copy of your passport's information page, valid for at least twelve months past your intended start date. If your passport is close to expiring, renew it before you begin the application rather than after — a short-validity passport is one of the most common reasons a file gets sent back for correction.

Next come your academic records: your highest diploma and full transcripts, both notarized, with certified Chinese or English translations if the originals are in another language. Notarization takes time in most countries, so this is worth starting weeks before you touch the online portal.

You'll also need a study plan or research proposal — roughly 500 words for a bachelor's application, 800 for a master's, and 1,500 for a PhD. This is not a formality. For research degrees especially, a specific, well-argued proposal is often what separates applicants a supervisor is willing to informally accept from those who get a form rejection.

Two recommendation letters from professors or academic supervisors are standard across almost every track. Ask early — professors get flooded with these requests in the weeks before deadlines, and a rushed letter reads differently from one someone had time to write properly.

Language documentation depends on your program: an HSK score report for Chinese-taught programs, or IELTS/TOEFL for English-taught ones. If you're applying for a bachelor's degree starting in the 2026/2027 academic year, you'll also need a CSCA (China Scholastic Competency Assessment) score, a newer requirement worth checking on your target university's page since test dates are fixed and limited.

Finally, a Foreigner Physical Examination Form and, for most routes, a non-criminal record certificate, both usually valid for only six months from issue. Time these last, close to your submission date, so they don't expire before your file is reviewed.

None of this is difficult on its own. The failure mode is almost always sequencing — starting the parts that take weeks (notarization, physical exams with a validity window) too late. Build your document list before you touch the application form, and work backward from the deadline.