ALL incoming students who wish to take ANY CHIN, CNTO, or CLCH courses are required to complete the placement procedure, regardless if you are a new or returning student.
You are welcome to register for the course first and complete the placement procedure within the next few days. However, a valid placement certificate is required to remain enrolled.
Warning: Students who are overqualified or underqualified may be removed, even after the add/drop deadline, and we are not responsible for any resulting fees or registration-related consequences.
Step 1: Take the Online Questionnaire
The online questionnaire will place students into courses according to their language background. Please register for a Chinese course specified on your online questionnaire result (certificate) or book a placement interview if requested.
Before accessing the online placement questionnaire, please connect to ubcsecure (on campus) or UBC myVPN (off campus).
Setting up UBC myVPN takes about 5 minutes 😄:
1. Download and install Cisco Secure Client for UBC myVPN.
2. Sign in with your CWL username and password.
3. Complete Duo multi-factor authentication and connect.
❓Need setup instructions?
👉 View the official UBC myVPN guide.
🤔 Having trouble connecting to UBC myVPN off campus?
👉 Click HERE for troubleshooting.
Step 2: Understand Your Result
Upon completing the online questionnaire, students will receive an email with their certificate. Please read through your certificate carefully.
What to expect?
If you are eligible to enroll in your course(s)
You can ignore the prerequisites for your approved courses and register for them on Workday. You are not required to schedule a placement interview.
You will need a placement interview if:
a) Your placement certificate states you need to schedule an interview
This usually occurs because you have some background in Mandarin. A placement interview is required so that we can more accurately determine your language level.
b) You have concerns regarding your online questionnaire result (certificate)
If you think your placement does not accurately reflect your language level, please schedule a Placement Interview↓. If you have further questions concerning your placement, you can email Chinese.Placement@ubc.ca.
‼️ Please follow the email formatting found here.
c) You are requested to schedule a placement interview
The Department Office, or your instructor may request you to book a placement interview upon reviewing your placement questionnaire answers. Please Schedule a placement interview↓
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Step 3: Complete the Mandarin Assessment if requested by your instructor
2-4 weeks before school starts, the instructor of the course you are registered in will communicate with you via the email you provided the UBC system. Your instructor may ask you to complete the Mandarin Assessment. This assessment is NOT a test but a tool to verify if your language level fits the class. Please complete it by yourself, without the help of any external resources. Contact your instructor if you have any questions.
What to expect?
If your language level fits your registered course
After you complete the Mandarin Assessment, inform your instructor by email. Your instructor will email you back to confirm your registration.
You will need a placement interview if:
Your language level does not fit that of your registered course. In this case, your instructor will inform you to schedule a placement interview↓.
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PLACEMENT INTERVIEW
The placement interview will take place on ZOOM.
Please enroll yourself to THIS CANVAS COURSE↓ to schedule an appointment and access the zoom link.
The upcoming interview dates and times can be found below.
| Year/Month | Date | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 August | Aug 21, Friday | 16:00-18:00 |
| Aug 24, Monday | 10:00-12:00 | |
| Aug 25, Tuesday | 16:00-18:00 | |
| Aug 26, Wednesday | 10:00-12:00 | |
| Aug 27, Thursday | 16:00-18:00 | |
| Aug 28, Friday | 10:00-12:00 | |
| Aug 31, Monday | 16:00-18:00 | |
| 2026 September | Sep 1, Tuesday | 13:00-15:00 |
| Sep 2, Wednesday | 15:00-17:00 | |
| Sep 3, Thursday | 13:00-15:00 | |
| Sep 4, Friday | 15:00-17:00 | |
| Sep 8, Tuesday (Imagine Day) | 10:00-12:00 | |
| Sep 8, Tuesday (Imagine Day) | 14:00-16:00 | |
| Sep 8, Tuesday (Imagine Day) | 17:00-19:00 | |
| Sep 9, Wednesday | 15:00-17:00 | |
| Sep 10, Thursday | 17:00-19:00 | |
| Sep 11, Friday | 12:00-14:00 | |
| Sep 12, Saturday | 15:00-17:00 | |
| Sep 14, Monday | 10:00-12:00 | |
| Sep 15, Tuesday | 17:00-19:00 | |
| Sep 16, Wednesday | 10:00-11:00 | |
| Sep 17, Thursday | 17:00-18:00 | |
| Sep 18, Friday | 11:00-12:00 | |
| Sep 20, Sunday | 17:00-18:00 | |
| Sep 21, Monday | 15:00-17:00 |
📧 Placement Inquiries: Chinese.Placement@ubc.ca
For email inquiries, please include your full name and student number in the subject line, for example: Robert Smith, #12345678. If your inquiry concerns eligibility for a specific course, please add the course number at the end, for example: Robert Smith, #12345678 CHIN233.
You can generally expect a response within 48 hours during regular teaching periods. During peak registration periods, responses may take up to 5 business days. Please wait the full response period before sending a follow-up email regarding the same inquiry. Failure to follow the required email subject format may result in delays in processing your request.
Please note if your question is specifically about CNTO courses, please email the Cantonese Language Program at cantonese.info@ubc.ca
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