This Beginners course for students with no prior knowledge of the language aims to provide students with a thorough grounding in the sounds of Chinese (Mandarin), as well as some basic speech patterns that will equip them to deal with everyday situations.

Topics covered include basic greetings, the family, likes and dislikes, food, and shopping.

The focus of the course will be on speaking and listening, but students will be also taught the rudiments of Chinese script, after which they can choose whether to continue learning Chinese (Mandaring) characters or concentrate on learning the language through the medium of Romanized Chinese.

*** THIS COURSE HAS BEEN CANCELLED DUE TO INSUFFICIENT INTEREST ***

This Post-Beginners course is intended for students who have taken our Beginners course (or similar), have mastered the four tones, can already handle simple structures and who now wish to immerse themselves in studying the language in earnest.

After revision of basic structures, students will move on to study grammatical structures of greater complexity and a wider range of speech patterns.

While students can expect to develop their oral and listening skills, to this will now be added the study of Chinese script. However, those students not wishing to develop reading skills can still follow the course using the pinyin book.

*** THIS COURSE HAS BEEN CANCELLED DUE TO INSUFFICIENT INTEREST ***

Students are advised not to buy any course books before the start of the course. Progress through the course and textbook will depend on the group dynamics of the class.

Chinese (Mandarin) Beginners

• Colloquial Chinese by P.C. T’ung and D. E. Pollard

An accompanying character text is available: Character Text for Colloquial Chinese (Simplified or Traditional Version). The teacher may supplement the main course book with other materials. Students who come from linguistic backgrounds in which Chinese characters are commonly used may also find it helpful to use the character text.

Chinese (Mandarin) Post-Beginners

• Colloquial Chinese by P.C. T’ung and D. E. Pollard

For students who choose to study script there is an accompanying Character Text for Colloquial Chinese (Simplified Version). The teacher may supplement the course book with additional material.

Choosing the right language level is very important and we aim to make the process of deciding which is the right course level for you as simple as possible.

If you are a complete beginner you should, of course, enrol on a Beginner's course.

If you have some experience in the language please first review our course descriptions to try to identify the course level which should be most suitable for you. Especially if you are out of practice in a language or have been out of formal education for a while please be reasonably sure and realistic about your level of proficiency prior to proceeding with enrolment.

For course-level advice please contact our Chinese (Mandarin) Coordinator: ruth.herd@imperial.ac.uk

All tutors on our language programmes are native speakers with a great deal of experience in teaching languages to beginners and the more advanced. Tutor contact details are provided in the programme pack which will be emailed to you just prior to the start of term.

For any questions relating to your tutor's background or teaching qualifications please contact our Chinese (Mandarin) Coordinator: Dr Ruth Herd, ruth.herd@imperial.ac.uk

Fee Categories and Discounts

Standard Rate

• Applicable to all except those who fall under the Internal Rate or Associate Rate category, respectively.

Internal Rate

• Applies to current Imperial College students and staff (incl. Imperial NHS Trust, Imperial Innovations, ancillary & service staff employed on long-term contracts at Imperial College by third-party contractors).
• Current Centre for Languages, Culture and Communication (CLCC) staff, current CLCC PhD students, Science Communication (Sci Comm) postgraduate students, and students enrolled on an Imperial College 'Language for Science' degree programme are eligible for the internal rate. There is no additional discount available for summer school classes.

Associate Rate

• Students (non-Imperial College)
• Alumni of Imperial College and predecessor colleges and institutes
• City & Guilds College Association members
• Members of the Friends of Imperial College
• Francis Crick Institute staff, researchers and students
• NHS staff (other than Imperial NHS Trust staff)
• Members of the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
• Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council staff
• Harrods staff
• Historic Royal Palaces staff
• Natural History Museum staff
• Science Museum staff
• South London Botanical Institute Members
• Victoria and Albert Museum staff
• Royal Geographical Society staff
• Royal College of Art and Royal College of Music tutors and other staff
• Santander Bank staff (Imperial College Walkway branch only)
• Austrian Cultural Forum staff
• Staff of Exhibition Road Cultural Group (Discover South Kensington) organisations
• Lycee Charles de Gaulle staff
• Tutors and other staff of other universities and higher education institutions
• Tutors and other staff of institution members of the Association of Colleges
• Residents of postcodes SW3, SW5, SW7, SW10 and W8
• Members of the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
• Members of the South London Botanical Institute (SLBI)

Late enrolment

It is possible to enrol on many CLCC Evening Class and Lunchtime Learning programmes after the course has started. For non-language courses this is subject entirely to agreement by the tutor. For language courses it is subject to agreement by the language Coordinator conducting level assessment. If you want to join a course late do bear in mind there might be work you will need to catch up on, particularly in language courses.

Applicable terms & conditions

Please read the before enrolling on any course.

Web enrolment starts 29 June

Enrolment and payment run through the Imperial College eStore. Please click on the blue booking link on the relevant course page noting below instructions:

• Our rate categories are explained on the course page and your applicable rate category must be selected on the eStore
• First-time eStore users please create an account by entering an email address and password. These credentials should also be used for future bookings. Imperial College users please note the eStore is not a single-signon College system
• The booking process involves entering payment details after your course choice and applicant details are collected via an in-built questionnnaire
• The following email notifications are sent:

For any questions regarding course content, delivery and materials please contact our Chinese (Mandarin) Coordinator: Dr Ruth Herd, ruth.herd@imperial.ac.uk