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With almost 19,000 students from Pakistan studying in China last year, the South Asian country has risen from the ninth-largest source of China's international students to the fourth.
According to statistics released by the Chinese Ministry of Education, more than 200,000 students from 64 countries along the Belt and Road Initiative were studying in China last year, up 13.6 per cent from 2015, China Daily reported.
The number of students studying in China from countries along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road has increased greatly under a series of preferential policies, education officials said.
"The growth rate exceeds that of China's international students as a whole," said Xu Tao, director of the ministry's Department of International Cooperation and Exchange, "as more than 440,000 students from 205 countries and regions were studying in China last year, a year-on-year rise of 11.4pc".
“A series of preferential policies drafted by the Chinese government for students from these countries have contributed to the remarkable rise in their numbers, including offering 10,000 places each year for students from countries along the Belt and Road Initiative to study in China under the support of the Chinese Government Scholarship,” Xu said.
Liu Jinghui, secretary-general of the China Scholarship Council, which administers the scholarship, said 49,000 international students from 183 countries and regions received the scholarship last year, among which those from countries along the initiative accounted for 61pc.
Xu estimated that the proportion would continue to grow next year.
Fang Jun, deputy director of Xu's department, said the ministry signed agreements with eight Chinese provinces and regions adjacent to or having close connections with countries along the initiative last year, such as the provinces of Fujian and Yunnan, and the Guangxi Zhuang and Xinjiang Uygur autonomous regions, supporting them to deepen education cooperation.
According to Xu, China has now become the largest destination for students seeking overseas studies in Asia.
Meanwhile, the number of international students in China aiming to obtain an academic degree, particularly a non-Chinese language major, is also on the rise.
Last year, about 210,000, or 47pc of international students, were in China for academic degrees. Popular choices were medicine, engineering, economics and management, Xu said.
Comments (63) Closed
china being one of growth engine of 21st century world has IMMENSELY improved education standards , pakistan should send more than 50 thousand students every year , finally this workforce will make pakistan manufacturing hub .india sends 13500 students to china , bangladesh still less .
Wow
Great news, hope we increase number of Pakistani students in China even more.
@saudagar ( indian) . SO how many Chinese students go to India for studies? Just curious.
@pakistani chinese student have absolutely no affinity for india , however indian top medical and engineering universities and colleges are flooded with talented indian students . IITs , IISCs, IIAMs , IIMs, NITs ,xaviers , TISS , etc .
@pakistani India has the highest student in US & UK Universities.
@saudagar ( indian) Indian institutions are very good no doubt about it, the one's you have mentioned. But still many more schools are needed in India also improvement in our education system is badly needed. Getting into Indian Institutions is tough and countless time brilliant minds are turned away with top scores. Due to lack of seats/Caste system non sense/ Mega Corruption even in medical/Engineering etc.,schools. This can be said about Pakistan as well. We don't Caste system, but our system has a non religious kind of Caste system based entrance/corruption and we also need mega improvement in education standards. Few shinning stars are good examples in Pakistan also, like AKU. IBA, LUMS etc., There are few shining stars in Indian education system, with accreditation with top American institutions.
We all know Chinese products and their worth!
@pakistani
According to the Institute of International Education, New York, the number of foreign students in India in 2015-16 was 42,420.
The list is headed by Nepal... followed by Afghanistan, Bhutan, Sudan, Nigeria, Malaysia, Iran, Yemen, Sri Lanka and Iran (in that order, constituting the top-10).
As for your question, China is not listed separately....so they must be under the "Others" category. I know once upon a time, the Chinese came to Bengal (to Viswa Bharati University set up by the poet Rabindranath Tagore ) to study Philosophy but I don't know the situation now.
However, as the Chinese government these days is keen on India's IT expertise, I won't be surprised if there are some in the engineering colleges ....but as I have no definitive info, I don't want to mislead you.
@pakistani I don't know exact Chinese numbers but in VIT college where I completed my B. Tech, there were around 250-300 Chinese students. Most of Chinese students in India are for English literature or to learn basic English.
"Seek knowledge even if you have to go as far as Cheen".
Centuries ago - we were advised above by the most wise, knowledgable and far-sighted man to ever lived on this earth.
My cousin is one of those students who is doing her PHd in Shanghai.
Love you China. Long live Sino-Pak friendship. Love to China from my Indus Valley Land Pakistan. Qilai! Qilai! :)
the number needs to be increased to over a hundred thousand. This will build links between Pakistan and the coming super power of the 21st century.
China is not exactly the cradle of science and technology or education for that matter. Intelligent Chinese students flock to US and UK for premier studies.
@Truth I went to a UK University, I don't remember meeting a single indian from india. There were plenty of UK indians. I did meet some Pakistanis from Pakistan.
China is the supreme power (beyond super power) of Future. USA is sliding down and will soon endure the same fate as Soviet Union in Afghanistan.
Pakistan happens to have the world's lowest 'functional literacy' rates in the world with only one million newspapers being printed for a 200 million population That China is helping out Pakistan is great news. They should target 100,000 students in 2017 through a special agreement. The more that is spent on education the sooner will the country truly develop. Good news.
@Mohammad S. Khalid Is that your wish, desire or fantasy? Any evidence for that statement that you could share with us please
@Armagan Akram
Chinese and UK Universities have strict criteria and accept only geniuses.
Very good. Going in right path. Development is the solution for every problem.
None of Indian or Pakistani University in the list of top 100 universities of the world.... So don't indulge in self administration.... Even few of them in top 100 in Asia... They are better in comparison with Afghanistan,Nepal,Mongolia,Iraq......
@Armagan Akram
"I went to a UK University"
Why are you hesitant to name the university. Anyway........go to London School of Economics. You will find a good number of Indian students and teachers.
Yeah it's good for Pakistan, good article. ... I read some comments here, mostly they are Indians :) :)
@pakistani I have studied in VIT university in tamilnadu (engineering) more than 1200 chinese students study there alone
studying in foreign top universities only INCLUCATE the habit of self-research in you. No spoon feeding exists. But I am proud of Asian (international) students especially in UK, who absolutely do very well in majority of the cases. They infact realise the value of their time and money spent in UK.
The highest percentage of foreign students in US, Canada, UK and many European countries are Indian. India is bursting at the seams with young talent and a young workforce while China has an aging and declining work force. It is obvious where the future lies.
@IMTIAZ ALI KHAN how many Pakistani universities are in top 500 rankings ? If you do masters from Indian institute of technology you can get job of teaching at Harvard,Princeton,MIT,Stanford university.
@Truth never knew Truth could be dubious. India has the second highest number in American universities after Chinese.
@prasadDeccani ; There is no need to enter into an argument on this point... Its a no brainer.. 1:7 is the population ratio and here some are discussing no Indians or no Pakistanis is such and such University. Always there will be 6 to 7 Indians to 1 Pakistani is any field.. education, business, employment, etc; Exceptions may occur, but no a precedent; So, neither Pakistanis nor Indians should get twisted over this and keep having cramps; We both need to survive and succeed in life and alway try to find better ways to love & harmony;
Why people do not prefer to study in our citadel when neighboring India have students from not only from its neighborhood but all the way from Russia, Afrika, Middle east, Malyasia and Indonesia. We need to do soul search!
Will need to find a job in China with that degree or with a Chinese company.
@Humans of Srinagar
FT Global MBA Ranking 2015: IIM-A, ISB Hyderabad and IIM-B in top 100
As regards IIT Bombay I request you to check yourself before commenting in public Sir All IITs are recognised world over.
@Mohammad S. Khalid - One CCCP missile with Hydrogen bomb can destroy entire country...and you are talking as if they used their best and secret weapons. It was a silly war with basic weapons - but a costly one. They can destroy the entire world many times if they want !
The war drained the Soviet economy and they could not keep the country together (which was already in a mess before war)
Same can happen to Pakistan within 10-15 yrs -with no exports and debt trap
@pakistani VIT in South India has 300 Chinese students studying Engineering. That Institute also has a China language center, the largest in the country which serves all the interested students. This University has a sprawling campus with all labs having the latest equipment, facilities which the more reputed government colleges lack. Have no information about other universities.
@A shah Not exactly. The bulk of international students coming to the US still come from China. In 2013-14, nearly 275,000 Chinese students studied at US undergraduate and graduate universities.
Indian students are less than half in numbers. India sends the second largest number of students to the US, after China, and this year that number grew by 6 percent to just over 100,000 students
@Shahid-khi Chinese education is exactly the same, sub-standard and just marketing material.
@Humans of Srinagar ... don't derive statisfaction on this, chinese universities are listed in top 100 .... but what's the use, they don't any chinese CEO's in US, they did not master Mars mission, neither anything big IT./
It would be good if we strengthen our universities. If we have specialised university or partner university then so many of our students will be able to get their education from Pakistan and it will also help the economy to grow. Good universities in Pakistan could also attract international students as well which will be plus point but I guess education is the last thing that our leaders care about.
The American universities just have more propaganda. At the Undergrad level, the Bristish education is more clear and concentrated. If A Q Khan had gone to America, he would never be the hero he is today. I am reporting you directly from the USA. Americans are outwardly salesmen and inwardly very stingy. All their technical knowledge is locked in secret company reports and NOT in textbooks. What matters is the quality of synthesis of lectures, books, notes, and laboratories. Reviews, quizzes.
Wah! Had no idea. That's good. So are Chinese universities.
Excllent - good choice for our students and China.
@AhMAd ... Chinese attend foreign universities for bachelor degrees because there are not enough places for everyone who wants to study in China. University entrance examinations in China are very tough. The Chinese have more money now to send their children to lesser schools like Shanda University in Shanghai where students from rich families can buy their way in. They also have the money to send their children overseas to study, which was not the case twenty years ago.
Some of the best educational institutions exist in India. Most of the brilliant minds go west because the facilities /resources for R&D don't exist. & therefore not very useful for the country. But there's a reverse brain drain that could happen with restrictions on Visa's. India should invest in infrastructure to benefit from this.
@A shah ; Looks like you "Listen and React" rather than "Read, Analyse and Learn"; Its the Chinese students coming to US, UK, Europe, Oz for higher education and they outnumber more that double the next nearest national of any other country; Trying to elevate Indians is good for ago by Reality is otherwise;
The number of Pakistani students studying in China will definitely increase in the days to follow because of historic friendly relations between the land and people of these two great nations.
@pakistani
None Sir (foreign students) for India...the IITs/IIMs (Indian institutes) have questionable standards (Unfortunately I am product of these institutes). The super power (China) attracts more students compared to the West (US/UK/Canada/Australia/France et al). Please ignore India which attracts zero foreigners (and please do not get distracted by comments from my fellow countrymen) ... I believe that you need to send students (in millions) to China so that CPEC becomes the true game changer for Pakistan. All the best from India.
@saudagar ( indian) Why can't you appreciate Pakistani students:-( Please praise...
@IMTIAZ ALI KHAN
You have a better education system and greater economy. Somehow I get the feeling that some people don't get a sense that citizens in Pakistan are hesitant to accept the greatness of the country. Please correct me if I am wrong:-(
Extremely hassled to read a few messages from my countrymen from India. As a kid, like all of them (my countrymen), I learned that a tree with fruits (knowledge) bows down to all due to heavy weights of the fruits. Namastay ("a bow down sign") is similar... not sure why I should not bow down to Pakistani people! But the comments from India are different! I was wondering if the sloka "Swadeshe pujjwati Raja, bidwan Sarborto pujjwate" is no longer valid. Thanks all and peace be eternal.
@SHAH S
What you said is correct, but you were addressing it to a wrong guy.
Chinese students are literally flocking to universities in western countries citing quality issue in China and we are sending our students to there. Also being one of the ancient civilisation and having universities built thousand of years ago like Taxila we should feel ashamed on this. It should be other way, students from China should come to Pakistan for study
@pakistani There are small number of Chinese students studying in India, however there are large number of students from over 25 countries including US, UK are studying in India. For example if you visit universities like Manipal, you can see over 50% students are foreigners.
How long it takes to learn Chinese? because medium instruction must be Chinese.
@Armagan Akram : I went to a UK University, I don't remember meeting a single indian from india.
You should look in the top universities.
@Z : If the Chinese student are geniuses, what would you call Indian students who are way better than them?.
While China sends it own students to USA, UK, Germany and Australia. What a joke.
@Vaibhav Mandhare This India is better than Pakistan and Pakistan is better than India comparision. I'm above this yaar. I love the Incredible India and will always love my Indus Valley Land Pakistan, where it all began for India. You and I both are children of the Holy Sindh, so stop hating and rise above. Top university ranking or not. I can assure you in Pakistan there is only one problem lack of good honest leadership. As far as scientists/technicians and experts, we have them in every field you can think off. I can say the same about India there are some brilliant minds in India, but still both India and Pakistan are third world. 600 million plus Indians defecate in open, massive poverty rigs India, you can't deny that. 50 million of Pakistanis are defecating in open, massive corruption/poverty also runs in Pakistan. So lets cut the hate and get love each other for our prosperous future together. RISE ABOVE!
@Humans of Srinagar Sane voice. Thank you.
Instead China should open university and schools in Pakistan so more convenient for pak and little language and other problems
@AdAm don't take that literally - it was meant to suggest the difficulty of getting education, and at that time China was a great power too.
@Khwarizmi ONLY PhDs in the world that are worth anything [re research and teaching methodology] are US; not even UK or Germany are any good.
Being a Pakistani person who graduated from a Chinese University in 2015, I think the 19,000 figure is totally wrong or may be its the number of student graduated in 2015. I studied in Wuhan city which have more than 37 universities for Masters and PhD and usually the average number of Pakistani students in Chinese university is around 50-60 which makes approx 2500 students in just Wuhan. Also the number of Pakistani students in undergraduate courses is in 1000`s. Even once I went to a medical university and they have more than 800 Pakistani students. But, even with the high number of students, the quality of education is even worse than the Pakistani universities.