What motivates international students to study in China and apply to Peking University?
Nov 29, 2019
Peking University, Nov. 29, 2019: Each year, more than 8,000 students from over 100 countries come to Peking University for full-time degrees or short-term programs. During this year's International Culture Festival, Sophia BAE HYEEUN, a 2018 Master's student from the School of Arts, toured the festival area interviewing student volunteers from over 50 countries for a survey asking why they chose to study in China and apply to Peking University.
Sophia (left) interviewing an international student (right)
Sophia found that students from around the world came to China for different reasons, but most of them still had many things in common. Some came for the quality of education, some to experience Chinese culture for themselves, and some came to see if authentic Chinese food lives up to all the hype.
After collecting all that information, Sophia tried to find some patterns within the answers. She found that roughly 40% of people come to China hoping to explore some cultural connection between China and their home country. European students tended to be slightly more interested in China's vast landscape and cultural heritage sites. Students from the Americas felt China was very much a mystery to them and thus wanted to better understand this country. African students tended to look to China as a model for development, worthy of studying so they might apply lessons from China's development to their own countries.
Admittedly, students come to China and apply to Peking University for a variety of reasons. Whether it's the culture, the people, the economy, or even just the food, China has a lot to offer international students and Peking University prides itself on providing an inclusive home to international students.
Written by: Trevor
Edited by: Pu Hairui, Huang Weijian
