A while ago a wrote about the Business Chinese Test (BCT) that I took in August. The results took about a month to come in, but here here they are:
Chinese Numeracy Test
Score: 6 out of 8
Interpretation: Can interpret routine charts and graphs; interpret a payroll stub; complete an order form and do calculations; compute tips; reconcile a bank statement.
My comments: A relatively good score, but I believe it is accurate since a lot of the number language (tables, graphs, statistics) is universal. Having had a good schooling in business statistics, I needed to understand only a little Chinese to do well with routine tasks. Where things get too far beyond routine, my vocabulary isn’t sufficient to interpret the charts – think of words as penetration rate, gross revenue, profit margin.
BCT 1: Listening and speaking
Score: 3 out of 5
Interpretation: Capable of fairly effective communication in Chinese business environment
My comments: I did better in speaking and listening than in reading and writing, which may have to do with the fact that I haven’t been following formal lessons for a while, while I’m still speaking Chinese regularly.
BCT 2: Reading
Score: 2 out of 5
Interpretation: Capable of basic communication in Chinese business environment.
My comments: Seems a fair score. My reading level isn’t enough to read ‘my paper‘, the most basic Chinese newspaper in Singapore, without an enormous amount of effort. It’s probably comparable to a Chinese primary school kid. Still I’m glad that I scored 2 and not 1, which would have meant I’d be considered totally incapable of communication in Chinese business environments.
BCT 3: Writing
Score: 2 out of 5
Interpretation: Capable of basic communication in Chinese business environment.
My comments: Like the score for the reading test, this seems accurate. I can write very simple e-mails, but my vocab is so limited that if you read them out loud, they would sound like a little child talking to Chinese.
