Chinese studies as a Chinese?SOAS?

So, I'm in year 12 taking A level music, art, RS and maths. I know I want to study music at university, I do violin at roughly grade 7 and the Chinese lute (pipa) at roughly grade 9. I've always been really connected to my own culture and I really love learning about Chinese ethnomusicology. I am a hanfu enthusiast, I follow up on a lot of Chinese news etc. I also speak Mandarin basically as a native level. Recently, I was looking into university courses, and SOAS's joint degrees of EA/Chinese studies and Music just seemed so attractive to me, it seemed like something I would really enjoy doing. However, I did mandarin at GCSE but not at A level because my parents told me "it won't be useful/ you are chinese(ethnicity wise)/it's stupid for a chinese person to study chinese". And I can't help but thinking that is true, if I did do a course like that, would I really just be taking an easy "lazy" course for me? If I took the course would I be seen as "weird" for being a chinese studying chinese studies?

There are British attending English language courses in UK unis, at the same time in China tens of thousands local Chinese taking Chinese language courses in unis. So it is nothing weird.

hello!!
I loved reading your story - it seems so interesting what you plan to do in the future and I wish you the best of luck on your journey!
for context, i'm in year 12 and i lived in hong kong pretty much up until my gcses so I ended up taking chinese gcse (yes, because it was kind of the lazy thing to do so it looked like I did an extra gcse compared to everyone else but i pretty much just turned up to the exam) and i am also studying music at a-level! (would love to hear what you think about it as I really don't have anyone to talk to since I'm the only student in the class)
i am currently not taking chinese at a-level but I can tell you that my mum (who also speaks chinese at a native level) took it for a-level and it's perfectly normal for chinese people to take it. (i get the feeling loads of chinese people do and hence, the grade boundaries are actually quite high). just note that it is SO.MUCH.HARDER. than gcse and not at all "the lazy way out"! you have to study a lot of chinese literature, history (opium war etc) and write essays on it. i honestly think my commitment and discipline l is not that high lol but listening to your story, i believe your passion and enthusiasm for chinese culture will make the course really worthwhile and enjoyable and i'm guessing from the fact your taking 4 a-levels, you're also quite academic and hard-working.
maybe look into the chinese a-level course and see what you think about it!! best of luck going ahead x

So, I'm in year 12 taking A level music, art, RS and maths. I know I want to study music at university, I do violin at roughly grade 7 and the Chinese lute (pipa) at roughly grade 9. I've always been really connected to my own culture and I really love learning about Chinese ethnomusicology. I am a hanfu enthusiast, I follow up on a lot of Chinese news etc. I also speak Mandarin basically as a native level. Recently, I was looking into university courses, and SOAS's joint degrees of EA/Chinese studies and Music just seemed so attractive to me, it seemed like something I would really enjoy doing. However, I did mandarin at GCSE but not at A level because my parents told me "it won't be useful/ you are chinese(ethnicity wise)/it's stupid for a chinese person to study chinese". And I can't help but thinking that is true, if I did do a course like that, would I really just be taking an easy "lazy" course for me? If I took the course would I be seen as "weird" for being a chinese studying chinese studies?

Hi, it's great to hear about your interest in SOAS and your passion for Chinese ethnomusicology!
I completely understand your concerns, but I wouldn't worry about being seen as "weird" at all. I'm currently studying Arabic at SOAS, and a few students in my cohort come from Arab backgrounds, but I've never once thought of that as strange.
As for the language aspect, SOAS is really good at accommodating students with different proficiency levels. They can assess your language ability before you start and place you in the appropriate class. For students who exceed the highest language modules, there are modules that go beyond focusing on language learning to examining literature and film or even writing a dissertation in the target language. So, hopefully, you'll still find ways to be academically challenged.
If language modules aren't your main interest, the East Asian Studies course offers a wide range of non-language modules too. SOAS has some unique options, like 'Myths, Legends, and Folkways of East Asia' and 'The Confucian World through Women's Eyes', as well as modules exploring politics, history, and culture, which could complement your interest in Chinese ethnomusicology.
If you can, I strongly recommend attending one of SOAS's Open Days. It's a great opportunity to chat with staff and students from the department about your goals and concerns. They also offer taster sessions to get a feel for the course and the teaching style. If this is something you'd be interested in, you can book a place here: https://www.soas.ac.uk/about/event/undergraduate-open-day-0
Good luck with your decision, and feel free to give me a shout if you have any other questions!
-Szara

Thank you for much for this response! This helped a lot!