Chinese Graduate Student Entrance Examination is a unified concept of some examinations organized by education departments or admissions institutions to select graduate students, which is the necessary examination for being a graduate in China (except a small number of exam-free recommendation students), just like taking the College Entrance Examination to enter a university. It includes preliminary examination and reexamination. Preliminary examination, which is often held in the weekend two weeks before Chinese New Year while was ahead of time on January 5th - 6th in 2013, is a national unified exam. The subjects of the exam are mainly assigned by the Ministry of Education, and little specialized courses are assigned by admissions institutions themselves. Those who meet the preliminary examination score requirements could get the reexamination. Except 34 experimental universities which could decide their own score requirements, other universities all have a uniform score requirement stipulated by the Ministry of Education. The reexamination is organized by admissions institutions themselves, and it is divided into written test and interview. The time, venues, subjects and modes of the reexaminations will be defined by admissions institutions themselves, and the exams are mostly put together in April. There were 858 admissions institutions in 2013 in the whole nation, in which 550 were ordinary institutions of higher learning, 308 were scientific research institutions. The total number of graduate admissions scale in 2013 is 539,000, while the actual number of students applying to attend the examination is 1.76 million.

Examinees should all take online registration for the preliminary examination on the Graduate Enrollment Channel (yz.chsi.com.cn) of CHSI network which is owned by China Higher Education Student Information and Career Center. The registration time is from September to October. After that, examinees should take spot confirmation and qualification verification made by admissions institutions to gain the exam qualification. According to the articles of admissions of the Ministry of Education, candidates for exam must meet the following requirements:

1. Graduating students with qualification certificates recognized by the government;
2. Personnel with undergraduate diploma recognized by the government (self-taught students and web-based students can apply for examinations only when they get their qualification certificates recognized by the government before the expiration date which is affirmed at the scene of application);
3. Personnel who have acquired higher vocational education diploma for 2 years (from graduation to September 1st) or more than 2 years, achieved the same educational level as University graduates, and met the definite business requirement according to the educating objectives raised by admissions institutions;
4. The undergraduates and adult higher education graduates with qualification certificates recognized by the government (including adult higher education provided by regular higher education colleges) can apply for examinations equaling to the same educational level as undergraduates;
5. Personnel with master or doctor degree;

Master degree candidates should get the permission of their colleges before applying.