Study plan and recommendation letters for the CSC scholarship: the two papers you write or request

Sources checked 11 October 2026 · Chinese Government Scholarship

The study plan and the recommendation letters are set item by item in each scholarship's own notice, so the answer depends on which scholarship you apply for. Under the Application Guide for Chinese Government Scholarship, the study or research plan must be no less than 200 words or characters for undergraduates, 500 for scholars and 1000 for postgraduates. Applicants for a postgraduate program, or for academic education as a senior scholar, submit two recommendation letters from professors or associate professors. Everything taken from the Application Guide for Chinese Government Scholarship in this article is a condition of that scholarship.

Chinese Government Scholarship: the study or research plan (item 8)

Item 8 of section VI reads: "A study or research plan written in Chinese or in English (no less than 200 words/characters for undergraduates; no less than 500 words/characters for scholars; no less than 1000 words/characters for postgraduates);"

Category named in item 8	Minimum length
Undergraduates	no less than 200 words/characters
Scholars	no less than 500 words/characters
Postgraduates	no less than 1000 words/characters

"No less than" sets the figure as the minimum, so 200, 500 and 1000 are each accepted as the floor for their category. Item 8 allows the plan to be written in Chinese or in English. Item 8 does not say how words or characters are counted for either language.

Suggestion, not a rule: check the count in the exact file you plan to submit before you upload it.

Chinese Government Scholarship: the recommendation letters (item 9)

Item 9 of section VI reads: "Recommendation letters. An applicant for a postgraduate program or for academic education as a senior scholar shall submit two recommendation letters in Chinese or in English from professors or associate professors;"

Taken in order, item 9 says:

The letters are required from an applicant for a postgraduate program, or from an applicant for academic education as a senior scholar.
The applicant shall submit two letters.
The letters are written in Chinese or in English.
The writers are professors or associate professors.

Item 9 does not name a recommendation requirement for undergraduate applicants.

MOFCOM Scholarship: the study plan and recommendation letters (items 4 and 5)

The MOFCOM Scholarship-CSC Program has its own list in section V, Application Documents, of its Enrollment Guide. Items 4 and 5 below belong to that programme only. They are not requirements of the Chinese Government Scholarship.

Item 4 reads: "A Study Plan or Research Proposal, plus a resume including the educational background and working experience after high school;"

Item 4 gives no minimum length for the study plan.

Item 5 reads: "Two recommendation letters, including one from current employer and one from academic perspective;"

Item 5 asks for one letter from the current employer and one from an academic perspective. Item 5 names no language. Reminder a) in the Reminders part of section V says: "All the documents to be submitted should be in Chinese or English."

Reminder f) in the same section is a different requirement from the two letters in item 5. It says: "Applications without the recommendation from the ECCO of Chinese Embassy will not be considered."

Chinese Trade Unions Silk Road Scholarship: the study plan (item 4)

The Chinese Trade Unions Silk Road Scholarship has its own list in section II, List of Application Documents. Item 4 reads: "A Study Plan or Research Proposal (written in Chinese or English). This should be a minimum of 500 words."

This 500-word minimum is the Silk Road Scholarship's own requirement. It is not the 500 words/characters minimum for scholars in item 8 of the Chinese Government Scholarship. Item 4 counts in words, not characters.

Section II, items 1 to 7, has no item for recommendation letters.

Side by side

Each row below is that notice's own rule. The rows do not apply to one another.

Scholarship and notice	Study plan	Recommendation letters
Chinese Government Scholarship, Application Guide, section VI	Item 8: no less than 200 (undergraduates), 500 (scholars) or 1000 (postgraduates) words/characters; Chinese or English	Item 9: two letters, Chinese or English, from professors or associate professors, for postgraduate applicants and for academic education as senior scholars
MOFCOM Scholarship-CSC Program, Enrollment Guide, section V	Item 4: no minimum length stated	Item 5: two letters, one from current employer and one from academic perspective
Chinese Trade Unions Silk Road Scholarship, section II	Item 4: a minimum of 500 words; Chinese or English	Section II, items 1 to 7: no recommendation letter item

Questions people ask

What is the minimum length of the study plan for the Chinese Government Scholarship?

Item 8 of section VI sets no less than 200 words/characters for undergraduates, no less than 500 words/characters for scholars and no less than 1000 words/characters for postgraduates. The plan may be written in Chinese or in English.

Who writes the recommendation letters for the Chinese Government Scholarship?

Item 9 of section VI requires two recommendation letters in Chinese or in English from professors or associate professors. It applies to an applicant for a postgraduate program or for academic education as a senior scholar.

Does the MOFCOM Scholarship set a word count for its study plan?

Item 4 of section V gives no minimum length for the study plan or research proposal.

For the full list of papers for the Chinese Government Scholarship, see the Chinese Government Scholarship guide.

Sources

Checked 10 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary. It is not published by or affiliated with the Ministry of Education, the China Scholarship Council, the National Immigration Administration, any embassy or any university, and it is not legal advice. If it differs from the official text or the current notice of the office handling your case, the official text and that notice prevail.