The Department of Chinese Language and Literature is an academic unit under the Faculty of Arts at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). Founded in 1963, CUHK is a forward-looking comprehensive research university with a global vision and a mission to combine tradition with modernity, and to bring together China and the West, aiming at cultivating talents with specialized knowledge and wisdom. There has been a clear position of the Department that sets a foothold in Asia with a global vision. The Department also aims at combining tradition with modernity, promoting traditional culture while also keeping pace with the progress of our times.
The Department offers diversified programmes including an undergraduate programme, the University Core courses of Chinese and postgraduate programmes. The undergraduate programme aims at equipping students with comprehensive knowledge of Chinese language and literature, in order to lay a solid foundation for them. The University Core courses of Chinese, which are compulsory for CUHK undergraduate students, are designed to cultivate students’ self-study ability, arouse their thirst for knowledge and raise their language ability. Postgraduate programmes include MA, MPhil, and PhD. The MA programme puts emphasis on cultivating students’ professional skills in various fields including Chinese language, literature and culture. Compulsory courses like seminar and research methods and academic writing, as well as elective courses covering fields like Chinese linguistics, ancient documents, classical Chinese literature, and modern Chinese literature are offered. The MPhil and PhD programmes take into account both knowledge and applications. In addition to writing a thesis, students are required to take compulsory courses including seminars and thesis tutorials.
In the light of rapid development of the society, the Department follows the trend through introducing new elements, encouraging innovation, enhancing students’ adaptability and competitiveness, as well as promoting teaching and research of Chinese language and literature. In the future, the Department will continue to offer language and literature courses with diversity and flexibility, with the hope of cultivating outstanding talents and contributing to the society.