This study aims to find out the difficulties faced by third-year Chinese students at Hue University of Foreign Languages and International Studies when taking Chinese reading comprehension tests at level 5/6. Data were collected from a questionnaire given to the third-year students and recorded in-depth interviews about the difficulties experienced by the students already taking the Chinese language proficiency test. The results show that in addition to the difficulties that the students faced in reading comprehension tests at any level, such as not having appropriate study methods and effective reading comprehension skills, lacking vocabulary, failing to master grammar, and not managing test taking time well, the challenges that pose a significant barrier to the students when taking Chinese reading comprehension tests at level 5/6 include uncommon topics, terminological words and connotative expressions.