Exemptions

With the exception of a few special programmes, normative undergraduate students are required to complete eight units of English language courses to satisfy the University Core English Language Requirements for graduation. However, students with specific qualifications obtained before admission will be exempted from the course(s) concerned and they can take other courses for fulfilment of the overall units for graduation as specified for their study programmes.

For enquiries about the application procedures or matters regarding CUSIS system, please contact the Registration and Examinations Section at (852) 3943 9888 or ugadmin@cuhk.edu.hk.

Students may apply for course and unit exemptions by equivalence for the English language courses they have taken in other post-secondary institutions given the courses taken are in principle highly similar to those offered by the English Language Teaching Unit (ELTU). The key factors for consideration are the number of credits, the breadth and depth of content coverage, the assessment scheme, and the students’ course performance.

To enquire into the possibility of granting course and unit exemptions:

1. Check the Undergraduate Student Handbook to identify ELTU course(s) that you are required and/or eligible to take
2. Check the ELTU course information on CUSIS or the ELTU website
3. Compare the ELTU course(s) with the external course(s) to identify potentially comparable courses
4. Submit an enquiry form for course equivalence together with the required documents* to the department of your major programme for verification and onward submission to the ELTU. Direct submissions from individual students are not accepted.

Please submit a separate form for each enquiry. If multiple external courses are indicated on the same enquiry form, it would be assumed that the student is planning to take all of the listed external courses in lieu of one ELTU course.

To apply for course and unit exemptions after completion of the external course:

1. Fill in the online application form under CUSIS
2. Upload the soft copy of the required documents*
3. Make necessary payment online

Please refer to the Registration and Examinations Section website for details.

All course details and documents listed below must be submitted together with the enquiry forms or applications for course and unit exemptions. The course details must be clearly xeroxed from the original handbook / prospectus or downloaded from the homepage of the host institutions. Enquiries or applications with incomplete information or insufficient documentation will not be processed.

1. Course description of at least 50 – 100 words (with course code and course title of the external course);
2. Number of units / credits;
3. Total number of contact hours;
4. Weekly teaching schedule (a detailed schedule showing the topics covered week by week);
5. Assessment criteria (list of assignments, tests, exams with details and their weighting); and
6. Official transcript showing the course grade obtained upon completion of the course (if available).

1. If students are planning to go on exchange and would like the English Language courses taken there be considered as equivalence, they might consider making enquiry for course equivalence preferably before their departure and external course enrolment. Nonetheless, students are required to apply for course and unit exemptions for the external course(s) to be formally accepted when they return from the exchange.
2. Each application is assessed on a case-by-case basis. An approval / recommendation granted to a course with the same title and code previously will not guarantee a continuous approval / recommendation due to the fact that course revisions on content coverage as well as assessment schemes are not infrequent for both external courses and ELTU courses.

For enquiries about the application procedures under CUSIS or other system matters, please contact the Registration and Examinations Section at (852) 3943 9888 or ugadmin@cuhk.edu.hk.

For enquiries about course equivalence and requirements, please contact Ms Crystal Chong at (852) 3943 5958 or sa.eltu@cuhk.edu.hk.