University in Chinese 大学
dàxué
University in Chinese is 大学 (dà xué).
Also searched for as: uni, college, university student.
Where do you go next? 20 essential university words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
The word for university in Chinese is 大学 (dà xué), literally 'great learning', and a student there is a 大学生 (dà xué shēng). These words follow university life from arriving as a 新生 (xīn shēng), fresher, to writing your 论文 (lùn wén), dissertation, and perhaps becoming a 研究生 (yán jiū shēng), postgraduate. They're especially useful if you're thinking of 留学 (liú xué), studying abroad, in China, or chatting with Chinese students at your own university.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 大学 | dà xué | university |
| 大学生 | dà xué shēng | university student |
| 学院 | xué yuàn | college; faculty |
| 校园 | xiào yuán | campus |
| 新生 | xīn shēng | new student; fresher |
| 本科 | běn kē | undergraduate degree |
| 研究生 | yán jiū shēng | postgraduate student |
| 硕士 | shuò shì | master's degree |
| 博士 | bó shì | PhD; doctor |
| 教授 | jiào shòu | professor |
| 图书馆 | tú shū guǎn | library |
| 讲座 | jiǎng zuò | lecture |
| 论文 | lùn wén | thesis; paper |
| 学期 | xué qī | term; semester |
| 学费 | xué fèi | tuition fees |
| 奖学金 | jiǎng xué jīn | scholarship |
| 留学 | liú xué | to study abroad |
| 留学生 | liú xué shēng | international student |
| 社团 | shè tuán | society; club |
| 食堂 | shí táng | canteen |
Usage tips
- 研究生 (yán jiū shēng) covers both master's students, 硕士 (shuò shì), and PhD students, 博士 (bó shì); 读研 (dú yán) is a casual way to say 'do a postgraduate degree'.
- Use 读 (dú) or 上 (shàng) for studying at a level: 上大学 (shàng dà xué), to go to university, and 读硕士 (dú shuò shì), to do a master's.
- 学院 (xué yuàn) usually means a school or faculty within a university, like 商学院 (shāng xué yuàn), business school, though some independent colleges are also called 学院.
Common mistakes
- 博士 (bó shì) is someone with a PhD, so 王博士 is Dr Wang the academic; a medical doctor is 医生 (yī shēng), not 博士.
- Learners copy English word order in 我学习在大学; the place goes before the verb: 我在大学学习 (wǒ zài dà xué xué xí) or 我在北京读大学.
Mini dialogue
- A你是新生吗？Nǐ shì xīn shēng ma?Are you a fresher?
- B对，我是英国来的留学生，在这里读硕士。Duì, wǒ shì Yīng guó lái de liú xué shēng, zài zhè lǐ dú shuò shì.Yes, I'm an international student from the UK, doing a master's here.
- A欢迎！你学什么专业？Huān yíng! Nǐ xué shén me zhuān yè?Welcome! What are you studying?
- B中国历史。下午我要去图书馆找书。Zhōng guó lì shǐ. Xià wǔ wǒ yào qù tú shū guǎn zhǎo shū.Chinese history. I'm going to the library this afternoon to find some books.
- A我带你去吧，顺便看看食堂。Wǒ dài nǐ qù ba, shùn biàn kàn kan shí táng.I'll take you, and we can look at the canteen on the way.
Example sentences
- 我哥哥在北京上大学。My older brother is at university in Beijing.
- 很多大学生周末去打工。Lots of university students work part-time at weekends.
- 他在商学院读书。He studies at the business school.
- 我们的校园很漂亮。Our campus is very beautiful.
- 九月有很多新生来学校。Lots of freshers arrive in September.
- 我本科学的是英语。I studied English for my undergraduate degree.
- 她现在是研究生。She's a postgraduate student now.
- 他在英国读了硕士。He did a master's degree in the UK.
- 我姐姐是化学博士。My older sister has a PhD in chemistry.
- 王教授的课很有意思。Professor Wang's lectures are very interesting.
- 我常常去图书馆看书。I often go to the library to read.
- 今晚有一个历史讲座。There's a history lecture this evening.
- 我这个月要写完论文。I need to finish my thesis this month.
- 这个学期我选了五门课。I'm taking five courses this term.
- 英国大学的学费很贵。Tuition fees at British universities are expensive.
- 她拿到了奖学金。She got a scholarship.
- 我明年想去中国留学。I want to study in China next year.
- 我们班有很多留学生。There are lots of international students in our class.
- 我参加了学校的音乐社团。I joined the university music society.
- 学校食堂的菜很便宜。The food in the canteen is very cheap.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The University speaking island has 8 everyday questions about university to prepare your own answers to.