The Chinese language has been rising in popularity worldwide over the years. One reason would be because of China’s economic rise, which has made knowing business mandarin an increasing necessity. Another reason, of course, is simply because of interest or to communicate better with loved ones.
Whatever the reason, we know that self-learning a language can be a little hard. If you’d like some help, here’s a list of Mandarin classes to get you started!
What does MOE-registered mean?
Basically, these are schools that have applied for the certification and met MOE’s basic statutory requirements. These include things such as building and fire safety requirements, and having an acceptable curriculum and qualified teachers. While we list this under our accreditation section, please note that this certification is NOT an endorsement or accreditation of the schools by MOE; rather, it’s just something that might help you in your considerations!
Course List
* All fees are in SGD unless otherwise stated and are up to date as of Sept 2019. This is only a list and not an endorsement of the courses listed, so please do adequate research of your own before choosing any course!
- Yi Mandarin – Conversational Chinese
Yi Mandarin was founded in 2011 and offers conversational, business and professional mandarin classes. Class sizes are kept small (6-8 persons) and conducted tutorial style, with experienced native Chinese speakers. One interesting thing about the school is that it organises a monthly meetup once a month for their students to come together and practise mandarin over food or calligraphy.
Duration: 12 classes (2 hours each)
Fees: 600 (excluding a one-time textbook fee)
Accreditation: Yi Mandarin is registered with MOE (via Crystal Learning Centre)
Free trial class available: Yes
- Elite Linguistic Network – Beginner Chinese Classes
Elite Linguistic Network is the sister company of Elite Translations Asia Pte Ltd and Elite Interpreters Asia Pte Ltd. Catering to adult learners with a small class size of 6-8 people on average, Elite Linguistic Network teaches both basic and business mandarin classes—they also offer an experiential learning programme where you can pick up Mandarin over cups of fragrant Chinese tea! Public classes come with 4 hours of complimentary revision sessions and an hour of free consultation. Do note that Elite Linguistic Network uses an assessment system that’s designed in a way that’s similar to the HSK exam format and collection system.
Duration: 12 lessons per term (2 hours each lesson)
Fees: 480 nett per term. The classes are SkillsFuture Credit claimable.
Accreditation: Not registered with MOE
Free trial class available: Yes
- inlingua School of Languages in Singapore – Virtual Classroom Chinese Courses
Established since 1972, the inlingua School of Languages has an amazing course catalogue: it teaches 17 different languages from Vietnamese to Hindi! If you have a hectic schedule, or just prefer a little distance, check out their Virtual Classes. Both fully online learning as well as blended learning are available, for a class of up to 4 students. Classes will be taught live by professional inlingua trained teachers.
Duration: Please enquire with inlingua.
Fees: Please enquire with inlingua.
Accreditation: inlingua is Edutrust certified.
Free trial class available: No
- New Concept Mandarin (Singapore) – Group Chinese Classes
Established in 2010 with its head office at Hong Kong, New Concept Mandarin offers Chinese language classes at various locations worldwide—one location being Singapore. Their group classes, available from total beginner to advanced levels, are kept small at 6 students max. Students will learn via a flipped learning approach, which uses a blend of face-to-face learning, video-learning, and review activities. Those taking Beginner level Chinese classes will learn how to order food and drinks, book tickets, ask for directions, and so on.
Duration: 32 hours per course module, 2 hours per session
Fees: Please enquire directly with New Concept Mandarin.
Accreditation: New Concept Mandarin is not registered with MOE.
Free trial class available: Yes
- Han Hai Language Studio – Foundational Chinese course
Founded in 2010, Han Hai Language Studio offers Mandarin classes from beginner to advanced level. They also offer business mandarin classes, HSK prep classes, calligraphy classes and Chinese classes for children. Class sizes are capped at 6 students, and Han Hai provides students with a complete Pinyin Guide for pronunciation and detailed Chinese grammar notes. Beginner classes cover conversations and text, grammar, writing tutorials and practices, speaking, and a little about Chinese culture.
Duration: 18 hours (2 hours weekly)
Fees: 520 per level for Beginner classes.
Accreditation: Han Hai is not MOE registered.
Free trial class available: No
- Singapore Chinese Chamber Institute of Business – Certificate in Gateway to Mandarin
The Singapore Chinese Chamber Institute of Business (SCCIOB) is a non-profit training and education body, and also a subsidiary of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry. With over 30 years of teaching and training experience, SCCIOB’s Gateway to Mandarin classes teaches students conversational mandarin in a social and thematic context. There will be 2 classes (6 hours) of e-learning, and the course will culminate in an assessment that determines if learners complete the course, or are ready to take on the next level.
Duration: 24 hours for each level (twice weekly, 3 hours each lesson)
Fees: 599.20 for members per course/level, with an additional 53.50 membership fee for non-members.
Accreditation: The Singapore Chinese Chamber Institute of Business is registered with the Committee for Private Education.
Free trial class available: No
- TMC Academy – Certificate in Elementary Chinese
TMC Academy offers a wide variety of classes from certificate to Masters’ level, and was established in 1981. The institution offers the Certificate in Elementary Chinese, which has 3 levels that cover phonetic pronunciation and thematic conversational topics such as school life and food. By the end of the course, students should be able to hold a conversation in Chinese.
Duration: 16 hours per level, 1 4-hour lesson weekly
Fees: 385.20 per level (excluding application fee). A discounted fee of 267.50 is available to those who sign up in groups of 6.
Accreditation: TMC Academy is EduTrust certified.
Free trial class available: No
- Chinese Edge – Chinese Group Courses (Conversational Chinese Beginner)
Chinese Edge offers a structured Chinese program that follows the syllabus from Hanban (affiliated to the Chinese Ministry of Education). Their teachers are native Mandarin speakers who are bilingual and have received professional training. Class sizes are kept small at 6-8 students, with studying materials such as in-house video lessons, audio-CDs, and course books available to you.
Duration: 10 lessons (weekly), 2 hours each
Fees: 500. Their classes are SkillsFuture credit claimable.
Accreditation: Chinese Edge is not MOE registered.
Free trial class available: Yes
- IKOMA Language School – Mandarin Courses for Adults (Basic)
Founded in 1996, IKOMA Language School is known for their Japanese classes. They offer Mandarin classes, too! These aim to help students to build a steady foundation for future Mandarin studies, and help them become fluent in daily communication. Students should be aged 15 and above.
Duration: 10 lessons per level, 2.5 hours each
Fees: 370 (excluding textbook fees)
Accreditation: IKOMA Language School is registered with MOE.
Free trial class available: No
- Confucius Institute, Nanyang Technological University (CI-NTU) – Daily Chinese-HSK Programme
The Confucius Institute at NTU was jointly established by the Office of Chinese Language Council International and NTU in August 2005. Its Daily Chinese-HSK programme is adapted from the Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi (HSK for short) syllabus, which is an international standardized test of Chinese language proficiency. Lessons are theme-based and the course is taught by NIE-certified trained teachers. Students will learn an average of 400 words and 50 language points per level.
Duration: 30 hours per level, 3 hours per lesson
Fees: 600-640 depending on the level, reduced fees available for those with National Silver Academy grants or UTAP funding. You can use your SkillsFuture credits on this course.
Accreditation: NA
Free trial class available: No
With these classes, we’re sure you’ll become a whiz at Mandarin in no time! 加油!
Interested in other languages, perhaps? Check out these course lists, too!
