NASA Astronaut Corps their home agency but trained with and serve alongside their NASA counterparts. International astronauts, Payload Specialists, and Spaceflight Participants are not considered members of the NASA Astronaut Corps. The term "Astronaut Candidate" (informally "ASCAN") refers to individuals who have been selected by NASA as candidates for the NASA Astronaut Corps and are currently undergoing a candidacy training program at the Johnson Space Center. The most recent class of Astronaut Candidates was selected in 2017 after receiving more than 18,300 applications. Upon completion of a two-year training program, they will be promoted to the rank of Astronaut. Selection as an Astronaut
Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language government of China: Nicaragua and Paraguay. Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language The Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language (TOCFL) (formerly known as the TOP or Test Of Proficiency-Huayu )() is Taiwan's Mandarin Chinese test. It is administered by the Steering Committee for the Test Of Proficiency-Huayu (SC-TOP) (). The committee is under the direction of the Ministry of Education of R.O.C. The test cannot be taken in Mainland China, Hong Kong or Macao. In these three areas, only the HSK exam can be taken. Conversely, HSK is not available on Taiwan, Kinmen or any of the territories