China spent decades building elite universities, but why are Chinese students still packing their bags for the West? In January, the Communist Party’s Central Committee announced plans to become an “education power” by 2035. In the recent past, this goal would have been far-fetched; however, Chinese universities have demonstrated their global competitiveness despite their relatively small endowments. Recently, China’s most prestigious universities—Tsinghua University, Peking University, and Zhejiang University—have rapidly climbed global university rankings and produced impressive alumni and research. For instance, Liang Wenfeng, founder of the disruptive AI company Deepseek, is one of Zhejiang University’s proud alumni. With the growing prestige of Chinese universities, one might expect that Chinese students would be eager to take advantage of opportunities at local universities. In reality, over a million students in China still opt to study abroad, mostly in the West. This paradox extends beyond education; it is part of a broader story about the issues in modern China.
For many Chinese students, their dreams of studying abroad start long before college. From the day they enter the education system, students face immense pressure to excel academically. The typical student’s day is grueling: school runs from 7:30 AM to 3:00 PM, but the studying extends well into the night with test-prep tutoring.
To understand why parents exert such pressure on their children, it is important to understand the standardized testing system in China. At just the age of 15, students face an exam that dictates the trajectory of their futures: the Zhongkao (中考). Passing means progressing to regular high school. However, students who fail face two options: vocational school or completely dropping out of the education system. In China, attending a vocational school often means ending up with jobs that provide few opportunities for upward mobility and are commonly looked down upon by parents.
Those lucky enough to attend high school still have another challenge to face: the Gaokao (高考), China’s standardized college entrance exam. Each university in China has its own cutoffs for Gaokao scores to attend; the more prestigious the university, the higher the cutoffs. With 12 million students being told to aim for a small set of top-ranked universities every year, the competition is fierce. A difference of one or two points might prevent a student from enrolling at their desired university, and in turn, diminish their future job prospects.
China’s hypercompetitive education system is a big reason why many students dream of studying abroad. For students who do not pass the Zhongkao, attending a foreign university is their only chance at getting a white-collar job. For others, studying abroad is a chance at liberation from the rigid system they endure in China. In countries like the United States, the most prestigious schools do not require perfect test scores as a criterion for admission. This idea lures many families to send their children abroad for a prestigious education without China’s pressures. In fact, affluent families deliberately circumvent the public education system in China by instead sending their children to international preparatory schools that specialize in getting students into universities abroad.
The gruesome education system is not the only factor driving students away; the current state of China’s economy is an equally strong, or perhaps even stronger, driving force. In recent years, the government has increasingly cracked down on China’s high-productivity businesses, from technology to finance to real estate. The most high-profile of these crackdowns was the big tech crackdown against Jack Ma’s Ant Group, which involved the cancellation of an IPO expected to produce trillions in market value. Following this move, many other tech and fintech companies were hit by similar waves of regulation; as a result, many Chinese companies that once rivaled their US counterparts are much smaller. Unsurprisingly, many companies were forced to shrink the size of their workforce.
The impact of crackdowns is tangible to China’s youth: the youth employment rate hit an all-time high of 21.3% in 2023. With fewer jobs left in the market and a yearly influx of fresh college graduates, a backlog of job seekers continues to grow, leading to a long-term unemployment crisis. Many fresh graduates who struggle to find jobs believe they must apply to graduate school programs to set themselves apart in the job competition. The only problem is how time-consuming it is to apply to Chinese graduate schools. Students must take a postgraduate entrance exam, the Kaoyan; the test is even more rigorous than the Gaokao, and it is common to spend a year preparing for it. Many believe a foreign education is not only easier to gain admission into, but also allows them to stand out when they look for jobs in the future.
For another portion of Chinese individuals, studying abroad is not only about education; it is also a chance at emigrating from China. The CCP’s draconian response to COVID left economic and social scars on the Chinese people. In an attempt to deny Western soft power, the Chinese government refused to introduce more effective Western mRNA vaccines and instead clung to older technology. As a result, the only way the government could effectively uphold its “Zero-COVID” policy was to enforce draconian lockdowns. Many endured unnecessary hardships during this period: food was scarce, care for chronic illnesses was lacking, and those infected were subject to unsanitary COVID camps.
Not long after the pandemic ended, the previously mentioned crackdowns started rolling out. Combined, these regulatory actions signal a clear message from the Chinese Communist Party: loyalty to the party is above anyone’s personal needs and ambitions. Wealth and certain freedoms are not secure but subject to government seizure at any time; dissent leads not to change but further suppression. For these reasons, many Chinese people are disillusioned with the government and believe their lives could be better abroad. Many who decide to study overseas hope to secure work visas post-graduation and permanent residency in the long term.
While many Chinese people consider studying abroad a solution to some of their problems, it is not all roses and sunshine. Due to China’s standoff with the Western world, Chinese students face restrictions that their peers do not. For example, Chinese STEM researchers in the United States have faced increasing deportations since 2021, despite having valid visas. In Australia, where migration numbers have increased for the past decade, the government has decided to impose caps on the number of international students at their universities. With the increase of populism worldwide, Chinese international students may not be as welcome as they previously were in many countries.
The experiences of Chinese international students offer a stark lesson about the unintended consequences of overregulation. The CCP’s goal in making such a rigid education system was to bring out the best in Chinese students—to produce the brightest minds that would push China to the bleeding edge of the global stage. While China accomplished impressive things recently, like growing its university prestige and founding Deepseek, this trend may not continue further if its youth is disillusioned with the nation. The country’s rigid education system, slowing economy, and unpredictable political climate have pushed students to yearn not just about studying abroad, but also immigration into other countries. The extent of the problem becomes clear in the light of increasing Western restrictions; despite the increasing odds of going bust, many Chinese students continue to take the gamble of studying abroad.
As China starts to execute its plans to transform itself into an “education nation,” it should think carefully not just about the quality of education at its universities, but also about the regulations, opportunities, and freedoms that shape students’ long-term aspirations. The CCP must address the deeper anxieties that drive young talent away. For example, easing regulations on private sector companies, particularly in technology and finance, could stimulate the economy and create more job opportunities for graduates. Additionally, ambitious innovators should not have to worry about their startup being seized or cracked down by the government. From the CCP’s perspective, it is important to maintain control; however, excessive control risks turning its education boom into a bust, one where its brightest minds escape to contribute to China’s competitors.
Featured/Headline Image Caption and Citation: “Visa issuances have been a major concern for Chinese students, particularly those studying in STEM fields,” Image source from Unsplash | CC License, no changes made