T4.3Higher tier1CN0 · Section T4: Future Aspirations, Study & Work 未来志向、学习与工作

Work: jobs, careers & professions 工作、职业与行业

Key learnings

Say what you want to become: 当 / 做, not 是
To state a present fact use 是 (shì — to be): 我爸爸是工程师。(Wǒ bàba shì gōngchéngshī.) — My dad is an engineer. But to say what you want to BECOME, use 当 (dāng) or 做 (zuò) after a modal, NOT 是: 我将来想当医生。(Wǒ jiānglái xiǎng dāng yīshēng.) — In future I want to be a doctor. 她想做护士。(Tā xiǎng zuò hùshi.) — She wants to be a nurse. Add where someone works with 在 + place + 工作: 我姐姐在一家银行工作。Note 家 (jiā) is the measure word for a company, shop or bank.
Justify a job choice: 因为…所以 + ideal job
Higher-tier work answers must give reasons, not just name a job. Use 因为 (yīnwèi — because) … 所以 (suǒyǐ — so): 因为我喜欢帮助别人，所以我想当老师。(Yīnwèi wǒ xǐhuan bāngzhù biéren, suǒyǐ wǒ xiǎng dāng lǎoshī.) — Because I like helping others, I want to be a teacher. Describe an ideal job with 理想的工作: 我理想的工作是记者，因为很有意思，又能到处旅行。Useful job qualities: 工资高 (good pay), 稳定 (stable), 假期多 (lots of holidays), 压力大 (a lot of pressure).
Future plans across past, present and future
Chinese has no future-tense ending; show the future with a time word plus a modal. Use 将来 (jiānglái — in future) or 以后 (yǐhòu — afterwards) with 想 / 打算 / 希望: 大学毕业以后，我打算先工作几年，再出国留学。(Dàxué bìyè yǐhòu, wǒ dǎsuàn xiān gōngzuò jǐ nián, zài chūguó liúxué.) — After university I plan to work a few years, then study abroad. Cover several frames: 我以前想当演员，可是现在我更想当医生，因为医生的工作更有意义。

Common mistakes

Drawn from real examiner reports.

Dropping the degree word in a job comparison

When the task or text makes a comparison, your answer must carry the degree word. ✗ 这个工作比那个很好 (never 很 in a 比 comparison), or 工资高 when the point was one job pays MORE. ✓ 医生的工资比老师的高。(Yīshēng de gōngzī bǐ lǎoshī de gāo.) — A doctor's salary is higher than a teacher's. Strengthen with 更 (gèng — more) or 最, not 很: 当医生比当护士更有意思。The 比 pattern is A 比 B + adjective (+ 更 / 得多).

Grounded in the edexcel-1cn0 digest: on Reading careers items candidates dropped the comparison -- be confident written where be MORE confident was required, and a comparison the text made was missed (June 2023 1CN0/3H).

Mixing up past, present and future

Higher-tier work tasks move across time frames, and examiners flag confusion. ✗ 我十五岁开始学中文 (I started at fifteen) when asked 你学中文学了多久？(how long HAVE you studied?) ✓ 我已经学了三年中文了。(Wǒ yǐjīng xué le sān nián Zhōngwén le.) Keep the frames apart: past 了 / 过 / 以前, present 现在 / 正在, future 将来 / 以后 / 打算 / 会. Do not let a future modal leak into what you have already done.

Grounded in the edexcel-1cn0 digest: on the careers Speaking role play candidates confused how long you HAVE BEEN in Taiwan with the future, and answered when they STARTED instead of how long they had studied (June 2024 1CN0/2H).

Imprecise job vocabulary (记者, 歌手)

Careers questions turn on precise job words. ✗ being unable to give a common job in Chinese, or blurring 记者 (jìzhě — journalist) with 作家 (zuòjiā — writer), or 歌手 (gēshǒu — singer) with 演员 (yǎnyuán — actor). Learn the job list exactly, both directions — you may be asked to give 记者 or 歌手 in English. A missing job word can block a whole answer.

Grounded in the edexcel-1cn0 digest: on the Reading careers/music-festival items candidates could not supply journalist/reporter (记者) or singer (歌手) in English, so precise job vocabulary was decisive (June 2024 1CN0/3H).

Wrong measure word for people (位/个)

The measure word for people is 个 (gè) or, more politely, 位 (wèi): 一位医生 (yí wèi yīshēng — a doctor, polite), 三个学生 (sān ge xuésheng — three students). A company, shop or bank takes 家 (jiā): 一家公司 (yì jiā gōngsī). Chinese has no plural ending, so signal number with number + correct 量词 + noun; never default to 个 for a company (一个公司 ✗).

Inferred from general FL-Chinese knowledge: number + correct 量词 + noun is compulsory and a wrong or omitted measure word is a stock error (general FL trap).

Place phrase before the verb (在…工作)

Chinese puts the place adverbial BEFORE the verb, unlike English "work AT a bank". ✗ 我工作在一家银行 (calquing English order) ✓ 我在一家银行工作。(Wǒ zài yì jiā yínháng gōngzuò.) — I work at a bank. The pattern is 在 + place + 工作. The same fronting applies to time words: 大学毕业以后，我打算先工作几年。Do not place 在…… after the verb.

Inferred from general FL-Chinese knowledge: time and place adverbials precede the verb, and English-order calques are a standard writing error (general FL trap).

Answer the exact facet and whose action

Read WHICH facet and WHOSE action the question asks. ✗ giving your feelings about lessons when the card asked for the ACTIVITIES, or describing what the father hopes when it asked what he hopes DAWEI will do ✓ answer the exact point: if it asks 你做什么工作, name the job and duties, not your opinion of it. Reread whether it asks about you or someone else.

Grounded in the edexcel-1cn0 digest: candidates gave feelings where the card asked for the activities (June 2024 1CN0/2H), and mistook whose action a verb applied to -- what the father hopes vs what he hopes Dawei will do (June 2023 1CN0/1H).

"Want to be a doctor" is NOT 我想是医生

English uses one verb "to be" for "I AM" and "I want to BE", so learners copy 是 into the second. 是 (shì) states an identity that holds: 我是学生。But to become a profession use 当 (dāng) or 做 (zuò), never 是: ✗ 我想是医生 ✓ 我想当医生。(Wǒ xiǎng dāng yīshēng.) — I want to be a doctor. Reserve 是 for a current fact (我爸爸是律师) and use 当 / 做 whenever a modal (想 / 要 / 希望) signals becoming something.

Exam tips

Four-step routine for a career task
For a writing or speaking task on work: NAME the job precisely with 当 / 做 (当工程师, 做记者), not a vague 好工作; give a REASON with 因为……所以 tied to a job quality (工资高 / 稳定); cover the TIME FRAMES asked (以前 / 现在 / 以后); DEVELOP with connectives, then check you answered an IDEAL job.
Name the job precisely, avoid 好工作
A vague 好工作 (a good job) scores little — name the profession: 当工程师, 做记者, 当护士. Attach where they work with 在……工作 and one quality (工资高, 稳定). Precision of the job word is often what earns the mark, and examiners have flagged candidates who could not supply 记者 or 歌手.
Signal the time frame clearly
Signal each frame so the examiner is never in doubt: past with 以前 / 了 / 过 (以前我想当演员), present with 现在 (现在我在一家公司实习), future with 将来 / 以后 / 打算 / 会 (以后我打算当律师). Do not let a future plan leak into an answer about what you have already done.
Develop with connectives and a comparison
Turn a list of short sentences into a developed answer. Link ideas with 不但……而且……, 虽然……但是……, 因为……所以, and weigh options with a 比 comparison: 我觉得当医生比当律师更有意义。Over-plain answers with no connective cap the mark for range.

Revision notes