Growth in numbers studying abroad slows
The growth in the number of Chinese students seeking to study overseas is slowing. In 2013, about 413,900 students went overseas to study, an increase of only 3.58% from 2012. In recent years, a number of the world’s best-known higher education institutions established schools in China by partnering with Chinese education bodies, providing more options for Chinese parents and students seeking quality education. This partly slowed the pace of Chinese students heading overseas, education experts said.
Source: China Daily
URL: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2014-03/13/content_17345532.htm
Editor’s note: The slowing of growth in the Chinese international education market may be a result of other factors, alongside the growing number of higher quality joint campuses in China. For example, domestic Chinese universities are improving in quality and in ranking worldwide. Also, a growing number of Chinese are choosing to return to China after working and studying abroad, only to discover that a foreign degree no longer commands a significant premium in the Chinese labour market. International universities and colleges will increasingly be challenged to re-define and broaden the service they are providing their consumer with employment skills development, job experience and job placement post graduation. Recognizing that many international markets are very “outcome” focused in selecting a study destination, the institutions that best compete in global markets may well be those that go beyond thinking of their service as “academic training leading to a degree or diploma” to more broadly package employment and actualization outcomes in their offerings.
