Vietnam sets another successful record for the number of students to register for the “Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language (TOCFL)”
According to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Ho Chin Minh City (HCMC), the test is entering its 7th year in Vietnam. The total number of examinees is 8,900 and will be around 10,000 by the end of 2013. It shows that the TOCFL test is popular and the number of examinees continues to increase.
The test is divided into five levels and is designed to help foreign Mandarin Chinese language learners to assess their Chinese proficiency levels. All examinees will receive a score report issued by the Steering Committee for the Test of Proficiency-Huayu(SC-TOP) of Taiwan. If they pass, they will receive a certificate issued by the Ministry of Education. The score report and certificate are very useful for students to confirm their Mandarin Chinese language learning progress. Upon completion, they can use their certificate to apply for admission to study in Taiwan, as well as for a job to work at a business enterprise.
In order to promote the test throughout Vietnam, the staff of TECO at HCMC regularly introduces the test to universities, high schools, as well as to enterprise organizations.
This test can be taken regularly in April and November for the public in major cities, and can also be arranged to be taken in remote schools or business companies. Currently, arrangements were made to offer this test to institutions in Dongnai province, Dalat City, and in Hue City. A Computer-based TOCFL test will also hold on October 19 2013 and a test for “Children’s Chinese Competency Certification (CCCC)” for children ages 7-12 will be held on November 24, 2013.
The TOCFL test offers the option of selecting the tradition Chinese characters or simplified Chinese characters for examination. The registration fees for the test in Vietnam are more reasonable than other tests. Its testing procedures are strict and test results can accurately evaluate the proficiency of examinees. Therefore, it has been utilized extensively and is seen as an important Mandarin Chinese test for Vietnam.