The HSK (Level II)assesses test takers’abilities in the application of everyday Chinese. It is the counterpart of theLevel II of theChinese Language Proficiency Scales for Speakers ofOther Languagesand the A2 Level of theCommon EuropeanFramework of Reference (CEF). Test takers who are able to pass the HSK(Level II) have an excellent grasp of basic Chinese and can communicate insimple and routine tasks requiring a simple and direct exchange of informationon familiar and routine matters.

I.TestTarget

The HSK (Level II) isintended for students who have studied Chinese for two semesters (an academicyear), with 2-3 class hours in each week. These students have mastered 300commonly used words and related grammar patterns. 

II.Test Content

The HSK (Level II) testis made up of listening comprehension and reading comprehension sections andcontains a total of 60 items. 

The test will last fora total of 55 minutes (including 5 minutes in which the test takers fill inpersonal information). 

1.Listening Comprehension

There are 10 items inPart I. The recording of each item will be played twice. A sentence and apicture will be provided with each item. The test takers should make a true-or-falsejudgment based on what they hear. 

There are 10 items inPart II. The recording of each item will be played twice. For each item, adialogue and several pictures will be provided. The test takers should selectthe appropriate answer based on what they hear. 

There are 10 items inPart III. The recording of each item will be played twice. Each item consistsof a dialogue between two persons with a third person asking a question relatedto the content. There will be three possible answers on the test paper fromwhich the test takers can select the correct one based on the passage. 

There are 5 items inPart IV. The recording of each item will be played twice. Each item consists ofa 4-5 sentence dialogue between two persons with a third person will asking aquestion at the end of the passage. There will be three possible answers on thetest paper from which the test takers can select the correct one based on whatthey hear in the passage. 

2.Reading Comprehension

There are 5 items inPart I. Several pictures will be shown on the test paper. For each item, asentence will be provided. The test taker should choose corresponding picturesbased on the sentence. 

There are 5 items inPart II. For each item, one or two sentences will be provided in which one wordis missing. The test taker should select one of the words in the answer sectionto fill in the blank. 

There are 5 items inPart III. For each item, two sentences will be provided. The test taker shouldjudge whether or not the second sentence is consistent with the first one. 

There are 10 items inPart IV. In this section, 20 sentences will be provided. The test taker will beasked to find the correlations between the sentences. 

All the items on thetest paper are shown in pinyin. 

III.Results Certificate

For the HSK (Level II),three results will be provided including listening, reading and total. The testtaker must score at least 120 points total to be considered passing. 

As a Chinese languagecertificate for foreign students’entry into Chinese colleges, the results of theHSK are valid for two years (beginning from the test date). 

Note: The aboveinformation is from the www.chinesetest.cn.