Chinese Students Shift from US to Australia, Britain
2024-10-02
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1A yearly report on international study shows the number of Chinese students in the United States fell by a small amount last year.
2Meanwhile, a growing number of Chinese students are choosing to go to less costly countries like Britain and Australia.
3Experts say the cost of studying in the U.S., a struggling Chinese economy, and tension between the two countries are reasons for the changing numbers.
4The number of foreign students studying in the U.S. during the 2022-23 school year passed 1 million for the first time since the COVID pandemic.
5That information comes from Open Doors, the yearly report on international study.
6While the U.S. saw a 12-percent increase in foreign students in 2022-23, the number of students from China fell by 0.2 percent to 289,526.
7China still had more students in the U.S. than any other country that year.
8India was the second-largest country to send students to the U.S. in 2022-23, with 268,923 students.
9That represents an increase of 35 percent from the previous year.
10In the 2021-22 school year, the number of Chinese students in the U.S. fell nine percent.
11The COVID pandemic saw Chinese student numbers in the U.S. drop in 2020-21 by nearly 15 percent.
12That number is about the same as the drop in students from all parts of the world in 2020-21.
13Vincent Chen advises Chinese students about studying abroad.
14He is based in Shanghai.
15He said most of the students he advises are still interested in studying in the United States.
16However, he also said there are growing numbers of students applying to study in Britain and Australia.
17"If you just want to go abroad, a one-year master's degree in the U.K. is much cheaper," Chen said.
18"Many people can't afford to study in the U.S., so they have to settle for the next best thing."
19Data from the nonprofit U.S. group College Board Research shows that in the 2023-24 academic year, the average cost for a U.S. private college four-year education increased 4 percent to $41,540 compared with the previous academic year.
20Foreign students, including Chinese students, also study in public U.S. universities.
21Those schools are generally less costly than private colleges.
22The British Council said three to four years of undergraduate tuition in Britain costs as little as $15,000 per year.
23The number of Chinese students in Britain was 154,260 in 2022-23, according to the U.K. Higher Education Statistics Agency, HESA.
24That is about 22 percent higher than in 2018-19, when the number was 121,145.
25Australia's Home Affairs office said in the 2023-24 program year, China was the top foreign country for new students at 43,389, up slightly from the previous year.
26Chen gave two other reasons more Chinese students are choosing to study in Britain and Australia:
27Chinese media's negative image of the United States and concerns about unfair treatment in the U.S.
28Bruce Zhang is a Chinese citizen who received his master's degree in Europe after studying in China.
29He told VOA's Mandarin Service that he had such an incident happen to him after he was admitted to a U.S. university's Ph.D. program.
30When he entered Boston's Logan International Airport last year, Zhang said customs officers questioned him for more than an hour about his research.
31They asked him if it had any connections to the military.
32And he said they took his computer and mobile phone for examination.
33Zhang was permitted to enter the U.S. for his studies in materials science.
34Still, the questioning left him so upset that he has told other Chinese to study elsewhere.
35Cui Kai is a study abroad advisor based in the American state of Massachusetts.
36She told VOA Mandarin that experiences like Zhang's -- or worse -- happen for a reason.
37Cui said those students who are questioned or denied entry have usually come to the U.S. for advanced study in an area related to security.
38Former U.S. President Donald Trump signed Proclamation 10043 in June 2020.
39That ruling denied visas to any Chinese student who had studied or worked in an organization connected to China's "military-civil fusion strategy".
40The U.S. says China has been using students and researchers to get important technology.
41Under Proclamation 10043, the U.S. took away more than 1,000 visas given to Chinese nationals and has denied thousands more.
42Critics say the policy is costly to the U.S. and is making Chinese students look to universities in Europe and other places.
43I'm Andrew Smith. And I'm Anna Matteo.
1A yearly report on international study shows the number of Chinese students in the United States fell by a small amount last year. Meanwhile, a growing number of Chinese students are choosing to go to less costly countries like Britain and Australia. 2Experts say the cost of studying in the U.S., a struggling Chinese economy, and tension between the two countries are reasons for the changing numbers. 3The number of foreign students studying in the U.S. during the 2022-23 school year passed 1 million for the first time since the COVID pandemic. That information comes from Open Doors, the yearly report on international study. 4While the U.S. saw a 12-percent increase in foreign students in 2022-23, the number of students from China fell by 0.2 percent to 289,526. China still had more students in the U.S. than any other country that year. 5India was the second-largest country to send students to the U.S. in 2022-23, with 268,923 students. That represents an increase of 35 percent from the previous year. 6In the 2021-22 school year, the number of Chinese students in the U.S. fell nine percent. The COVID pandemic saw Chinese student numbers in the U.S. drop in 2020-21 by nearly 15 percent. That number is about the same as the drop in students from all parts of the world in 2020-21. 7Vincent Chen advises Chinese students about studying abroad. He is based in Shanghai. He said most of the students he advises are still interested in studying in the United States. However, he also said there are growing numbers of students applying to study in Britain and Australia. 8"If you just want to go abroad, a one-year master's degree in the U.K. is much cheaper," Chen said. "Many people can't afford to study in the U.S., so they have to settle for the next best thing." 9Data from the nonprofit U.S. group College Board Research shows that in the 2023-24 academic year, the average cost for a U.S. private college four-year education increased 4 percent to $41,540 compared with the previous academic year. 10Foreign students, including Chinese students, also study in public U.S. universities. Those schools are generally less costly than private colleges. 11The British Council said three to four years of undergraduate tuition in Britain costs as little as $15,000 per year. 12The number of Chinese students in Britain was 154,260 in 2022-23, according to the U.K. Higher Education Statistics Agency, HESA. That is about 22 percent higher than in 2018-19, when the number was 121,145. 13Australia's Home Affairs office said in the 2023-24 program year, China was the top foreign country for new students at 43,389, up slightly from the previous year. 14Chen gave two other reasons more Chinese students are choosing to study in Britain and Australia: Chinese media's negative image of the United States and concerns about unfair treatment in the U.S. 15Bruce Zhang is a Chinese citizen who received his master's degree in Europe after studying in China. He told VOA's Mandarin Service that he had such an incident happen to him after he was admitted to a U.S. university's Ph.D. program. 16When he entered Boston's Logan International Airport last year, Zhang said customs officers questioned him for more than an hour about his research. They asked him if it had any connections to the military. And he said they took his computer and mobile phone for examination. 17Zhang was permitted to enter the U.S. for his studies in materials science. Still, the questioning left him so upset that he has told other Chinese to study elsewhere. 18Cui Kai is a study abroad advisor based in the American state of Massachusetts. She told VOA Mandarin that experiences like Zhang's -- or worse -- happen for a reason. 19Cui said those students who are questioned or denied entry have usually come to the U.S. for advanced study in an area related to security. 20Former U.S. President Donald Trump signed Proclamation 10043 in June 2020. That ruling denied visas to any Chinese student who had studied or worked in an organization connected to China's "military-civil fusion strategy". 21The U.S. says China has been using students and researchers to get important technology. Under Proclamation 10043, the U.S. took away more than 1,000 visas given to Chinese nationals and has denied thousands more. 22Critics say the policy is costly to the U.S. and is making Chinese students look to universities in Europe and other places. 23I'm Andrew Smith. And I'm Anna Matteo. 24Andrew Smith adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting by Tracy Liu and Adrianna Zhang of VOA News. 25________________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27apply -v. to formerly ask to be admitted into a school; to formerly ask for a job 28afford -v. to be able to pay for something 29tuition -n. the money schools charge students to attend their classes