Do Chinese postgraduate students still want to study abroad?

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The most popular destinations for Chinese postgraduate students who want to study abroad include the US (50.8%), the UK (45.2%), Japan (19.1%), Canada (16.9%) and Germany (14.4%).

Chinese postgraduate students would like to study abroad after the pandemic according to a survey conducted by the School of Graduate Studies of Lingnan University (LU). 

Conducted as a follow up to last year's Understanding Hong Kong and Mainland university students’ intentions to study overseas after the COVID-19 crisis, it found that one in five Mainland university students would pursue studying abroad after the pandemic.

According to LU, 78% of Chinese postgraduate students had no intention of studying abroad before the pandemic. That figure increased to 92% during the pandemic whereas one in five (20.9%) would consider postgraduate studies abroad once the severity of the pandemic has died down.

The most cited reasons by Chinese postgraduate students to not pursue studies abroad during the pandemic; “my parents would be concerned about my safety and health during the pandemic” (85.2%), “I myself would be worried about my safety and health during the pandemic” (84.2%), and “I am afraid I would not be able to get home during the pandemic” (81.4%). 

Among the most popular destinations for Chinese postgraduate students considering furthering their academic studies abroad were the US (50.8%), the UK (45.2%), Japan (19.1%), Canada (16.9%) and Germany (14.4%). 

Meanwhile, Hong Kong which ranked 8thin the preferred destinations for postgraduate students before the pandemic jumped to 6thas a destination to study at during the pandemic but ranked 9thbehind France, Australia and Canada as a post-COVIDstudy destination.

For Chinese postgraduate students wishing to pursue postgraduate degrees abroad, the top three push factors are “the university I prefer can provide a high-quality student learning experience” (80.9%), “the university I prefer has a strong international reputation” (80.4%), and “a foreign university degree will help me to stand out in the fiercely competitive job market” (72.1%). 

Graphs supplied: School of Graduate Studies of Lingnan University 
Image / 123RF