China is by far the world’s largest source market for international students. Chinese students account for 32% of international enrolment in Canada, 29% of all foreign students in the US and Australia, and one out of three new international students in the UK.

 

According to figures from the Ministry of Education, China sent a record number of students – 413,900 – abroad in 2013 . Data from major destination countries shows that the number of outbound Chinese students continues to grow at a more robust rate. The latest reports from Canada, for example, show year-over-year growth of 18% in Chinese enrolments from 2012 to 2013. The US  reports growth of more than 20% over those two years. Similarly, Australia saw 6.1% growth for the year to May 2014 compared to the same period for 2013.

 

Recent years have seen a distinct increase in the number of younger Chinese students studying overseas. We reported on this last year and noted at the time findings from a Chinese think tank that nearly 23% of all Chinese overseas students in 2011 held an academic certificate below the high school level.

 

Indeed, the demand for study abroad is likely to remain strong as Chinese students and parents continue to seek out opportunities for quality education and for a competitive advantage in a challenging job market at home. However, we might also expect that that demand will continue to shift in new directions as it has done in recent years, notably towards secondary school programmes and to technical and professional programmes that are more squarely aimed at employer requirements in China.