Chinese University Won’t Send Your Transcript to WES? What to Check

What Does “The University Won’t Send” Mean in Your Case?

Applicants use this phrase for several different problems:

• the university will not issue a transcript;
• it issues a transcript only to the graduate;
• it will not arrange international courier delivery;
• it will not email documents to WES;
• it does not have a direct WES electronic partnership;
• it does not recognize the term “WES”;
• it requires the former student to make the request personally;
• it requires identity verification or authorization;
• it has not answered a WES or CSSD request; or
• its archive cannot locate the historical record.

These situations do not have one solution. A transcript-issuance problem, a delivery problem and a secondary-verification problem involve different processes. Start with the exact wording from WES or CSSD before asking the university to act.

Does Your University Actually Need to Send the Transcript to WES?

WES generally requires official academic records to come from the issuing institution or another approved, verifiable source, subject to the applicant’s current Required Documents instructions.

For certain Chinese credentials, CSSD is an approved verification and electronic-delivery source. In those cases, the expected route may be:

University source record → CSSD verification → CSSD delivery to WES

rather than:

University → direct delivery to WES

The university can still matter in the CSSD route. It may need to issue the underlying transcript, confirm academic information or answer a verification enquiry. CSSD does not automatically replace every university function.

If you are starting an application rather than troubleshooting a particular blockage, use the step-by-step WES guide for Chinese credentials.

Check Your Current WES Required Documents

The applicant-specific WES Required Documents instructions should control the route. Confirm:

• the country of education, institution and credential;
• whether the program was completed;
• the exact document requested;
• which organization must send or verify it;
• the permitted delivery method; and
• whether a later WES message changes the original instruction.

Do not rely on an old checklist or another graduate’s case. If the Required Documents list conflicts with a later account message, ask WES which instruction applies before arranging another submission.

When CSSD/CHSI Is the Applicable Delivery Route

Current CSSD instructions provide a WES portal route for specified Chinese postsecondary records. Depending on the case, the relevant documents may include qualification verification, degree verification, transcript verification, student-record verification for an in-school applicant, or electronic delivery of a report to WES.

These report categories are separate. Not every applicant needs every report.

The official CSSD–WES instructions tell applicants to obtain a WES reference number, review the documents WES requires, apply for the relevant reports and transmit them through the available CSSD delivery function.

For a comparison of the report types, review CHSI and CSSD academic verification reports.

CSSD may be the party that sends the verified report to WES, but the university can remain the source of the underlying academic information. CSSD may also require institutional confirmation while verifying a transcript. A CSSD report does not guarantee WES acceptance or a particular equivalency result.

When the University Really Does Need to Act

University action may be necessary when:

• a source transcript must first be issued;
• the transcript is incomplete or contains incorrect information;
• CSSD asks the institution to confirm the record;
• WES expressly requires an institution-issued submission;
• WES has sent a secondary-verification request;
• applicant authorization is required before records can be released; or
• a historical transcript must be found in university archives.

Ask for the specific action needed. “Please do WES” may not tell a university officer whether you need a transcript, verification response, sealed envelope or CSSD confirmation.

The University Will Issue the Transcript but Will Not Send It

Issuance and transmission are separate questions. If the university can issue the transcript but refuses international mailing or direct WES delivery, check whether:

• CSSD verification and delivery is the assigned route;
• WES permits another approved electronic source;
• postal delivery is required;
• the institution has an authorized academic-record office that can use a WES-permitted delivery method; or
• WES must approve an alternative.

Do not arrange an improvised delivery method merely because the transcript is genuine. WES must also be able to confirm that it arrived through an acceptable source.

The University Gives the Transcript Only to the Student

Receiving the transcript personally does not necessarily mean you may send it directly to WES.

In some CSSD transcript-verification workflows, the applicant may be able to provide an original transcript to CSSD. CSSD can still verify the record with official departments and may request further institutional material. See the current CSSD transcript application instructions.

That is different from emailing or uploading the transcript to WES yourself. Follow the submission route stated by WES and CSSD.

If the underlying qualification or degree record cannot be found, use the separate guide to troubleshooting a China degree or graduation record not found on CHSI.

The University Does Not Have a WES Electronic Partnership

The absence of a direct university–WES partnership does not automatically end the process. Possible routes may include CSSD electronic delivery, another WES-approved platform, authorized institutional email where WES permits it, postal delivery in an institution-sealed envelope, or another official route approved by WES.

WES lists CSSD among its approved direct-transmission partners. Its electronic academic-record guidance also explains that permitted methods can include approved platforms, direct transmission channels and verified institutional email.

The university’s lack of a partnership does not establish which alternative applies. Check the current WES instructions.

Why an Ordinary University Email May Not Be Accepted

A message does not become an official academic submission merely because it comes from an address that looks institutional.

Where WES permits email delivery, WES must be able to verify the source. The sender should be authorized to release academic records, such as an appropriate registrar, academic-record or examination office. WES may also verify the sender through the institution’s official website and apply security checks to the message and attachment.

Do not ask an unrelated professor, class adviser or personal contact to email the transcript unless that person is authorized under the applicable institutional and WES process. A transcript sent from the applicant’s personal email should not be presented as satisfying an official-source requirement.

WES Is Waiting for Institution Verification

“Waiting for institution verification” is not the same as waiting for the university to send the original transcript.

WES may already have received the required documents and then sent copies or information to the issuing institution or authority for confirmation. According to the current WES verification guidance, applicants should follow the instructions in the WES account and from the institution. WES may not require applicant action unless the institution needs authorization, a fee or additional information.

Another transcript does not automatically answer the verification request. Ask the university to identify the WES enquiry and follow the response instructions provided by WES.

Secondary verification should not be described as proof of fraud or an invalid degree. It means WES requires further confirmation before continuing.

The University Has Not Answered WES or CSSD

First identify who sent the request, where it was sent and which university office should respond. You may be able to:

• give the institution the WES reference number;
• confirm that the request reached the correct office;
• provide applicant authorization if requested;
• pay an institution’s verification fee if required;
• clarify a former name, passport or student number;
• ask whether another faculty, registrar or archive holds the record; or
• notify WES if the institution says it already responded.

Do not send a substitute document unless WES or CSSD confirms that it is acceptable. Contacting the university may facilitate a response, but it does not guarantee verification or acceptance.

The University Requires Applicant Authorization

A university may require the former student to initiate the request, prove identity, sign an authorization or approve communication with a representative.

Assistance can include bilingual correspondence or applicant-authorized coordination where permitted. It cannot replace the applicant’s participation when the institution requires it. Do not give university portal credentials to an unapproved third party or ask anyone to impersonate you.

What Foreign Graduates Can Start From Outside China

Many diagnostic steps can begin remotely:

• review the WES instructions and messages;
• identify the responsible university office;
• compare current and historical identity information;
• locate the former student number;
• gather the transcript and certificates;
• contact the International Student Office, registrar or archive; and
• ask whether authorized local collection is permitted.

A former student may need the passport used during study, a current passport, student number or evidence connecting historical and current identities. These are practical possibilities, not universal requirements.

For focused identity issues, use CHSI old-passport and name-mismatch troubleshooting.

Remote diagnosis does not guarantee fully remote resolution. The university may require applicant participation, original or certified documents, a signed request or institution-specific authorization.

What If the University Cannot Find the Transcript?

This is a source-record or archive problem, not merely a delivery problem. Ask which office holds records for the graduation year and program. Possible custodians may include the registrar, faculty, graduate school, International Student Office or archive, depending on the institution.

Useful identifiers may include the name used during study, passport number, student number, program, faculty and graduation year. Their sufficiency remains institution-specific.

If the record cannot be located, ask WES or CSSD what official alternative, if any, is acceptable. Do not treat a personal transcript copy, notarization or explanatory letter as an automatic substitute.

What If the University Merged, Renamed or Closed?

Identify whether a successor institution, archive or education authority now holds the records. Check official university or government information rather than assuming that the former name no longer has a records custodian.

If the custodian cannot be identified or cannot use the expected submission route, ask WES for case-specific instructions. There is no single archive rule covering every institutional reorganization.

What If the University Will Not Issue an English Transcript?

This is not automatically fatal. Follow the translation instructions in the WES account.

When translation is required, it should be complete, legible and accurately correspond to the original-language record. Translation accompanies rather than replaces the required original academic document.

Current WES translation guidance describes professional translation and separate applicant upload of translations where applicable. Applicant-prepared translations should not be presented as automatically acceptable.

Can You Send a Sealed Transcript Yourself?

The answer is case-specific.

Where postal delivery applies, WES’s general guidance may require an institution-sealed envelope showing the institution name and WES reference number, with a seal, stamp or authorized signature across the flap. See the current WES sealed-envelope guidance.

Whether an applicant may courier or forward that envelope depends on the current instructions. Do not assume the practice is always accepted or always prohibited. A sealed envelope also does not replace CSSD verification when WES requires the CSSD route.

Why Notarization or Apostille Is Not a Substitute

WES academic-document submission, CSSD verification, notarization and Apostille have different functions.

Notarization or Apostille does not automatically provide a missing transcript, create a CSSD report, answer a WES verification request, establish an approved WES source or repair incomplete university records. Use either process only if WES or another receiving organization separately requests it.

Who Should You Contact Next?

Contact WES when:

• the required route is unclear;
• the Required Documents list conflicts with a later message;
• the prescribed route cannot be used;
• a delivered document or CSSD report has not been matched; or
• an alternative official route needs approval.

Contact CSSD when:

• a required verification report cannot be generated;
• report verification or delivery has failed;
• CSSD requests additional material; or
• the problem concerns a CSSD application rather than university issuance.

Contact the university when:

• the source transcript must be issued;
• the transcript is incomplete or incorrect;
• CSSD requests institutional confirmation;
• WES specifically requests an institutional response;
• applicant authorization is required; or
• historical archives must be checked.

For commercial assistance with diagnosis and coordination, Global Attest provides China academic document support for WES.

Documents and Messages to Review

Gather what is relevant and available:

• current WES Required Documents list;
• complete WES status or verification message;
• WES reference number;
• transcript, degree certificate and graduation certificate;
• CSSD/CHSI reports and delivery evidence;
• university correspondence;
• student number and graduation year;
• historical and current identity records where relevant;
• translation or authorization form; and
• courier or electronic-submission evidence.

Not every item is required in every case.

Frequently Asked Questions