Australian Universities’ Review - International students at Chinese joint venture universities - Factors influencing decisions to enrol

Oct 15, 2026

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Investigates why international students choose to enrol at University of Nottingham Ningbo China, despite English-medium instruction in joint ventures and the fact that many source countries are not English speaking. Provides background on shifting Chinese international student mobility, including degree vs non-degree enrolment and key provider nations. Examines how joint venture higher education institutions operate under Chinese policy requirements and how English-taught study may affect students’ ability to function abroad and within China’s internationalisation process.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction and context

International student mobility trends in China

Joint venture higher education institutions

Common policy requirements and characteristics

A U S T R A L I A N U N I V E R S I T I E S ’ R E V I E W International students at Chinese joint venture universities Factors influencing decisions to enrol Andrys Onsman Monash University The People’s Republic of China has determined to assume a respected place amongst the world’s foremost higher education providers. Its short term strategy is multi-pronged: attracting world-class scholars; attracting international students and encouraging Chinese universities to run branches overseas. As well, a small number of select foreign universities have been invited to contribute to joint venture higher education institutions in China. Joint ventures provide an opportunity for local students to obtain a foreign degree without leaving the country but increasingly they also provide a supported environment for international students to come to China to study. This phenomenon has created some problematic areas. For instance, all current and proposed joint ventures use English as their medium of instruction but the many of the source countries such as Russia, Indonesia, Japan Korea and Malaysia are not English speaking. Why then do international students from those countries choose to study at an English or American university located in China? This study explores the reasons why international students choose to enrol at University of Nottingham Ningbo China, the most established JV in China. Introduction and context Although international student mobility has been evident for millennia, over the last five decades analysis of trendsand patterns have assumed a greater prominence in higher education research. In part this is due to economic factors and consequently much of the commentary and analysis has assumed a market-driven competitive perspective. In terms of international student mobility, the situation in China has changed rapidly over the last five years. According to Zhao & Postiglone (2008), 162,695 overseas students enrolled in Chinese universities in 2006. Mainly from neighbouring countries such as South Korea, Japan, Vietnam and Indonesia, there were also a handful of overseas students from the USA and Europe. Since then the Chinese Government has been pro-active in chasing overseas students and numbers of international students studying in China show a shift.The Ministry of Education’s most recent figures state that in 2010 there were more than 265,000 international students studying at 620 mainland Chinese higher education institutions (Ministry of Education, 2011) . Although two-thirds of the students came from other Asian countries, individually the top provider countries were Republic of Korea, the United States, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Russia, Indonesia, India, Kazakhstan and Pakistan. France and Mongolia also provided more than 5,000 students each. However, the most relevant statistic is that 107,432 were studying for academic degrees, whilst 157,658 were pursuing non-degree education. In broad terms, this seems to indicate that two-fifths of the international students currently in China are there to vol. 55, no. 2, 2013 International students at Chinese joint venture universities, Andrys Onsman 15 A U S T R A L I A N U N I V E R S I T I E S ’ R E V I E W pursue serious study rather than simply to enjoy a ‘China Experience’.This phenomenon is the subject of on-going research; especially in relation to the Chinese government’s ‘Outline of China’s National Plan for Medium and Long-term Education Reform and Development (2010- 2020)’ prediction that by 2020 the number will top the half million mark, with the majority of them studying for academic degrees (Ministry of Education, 2010) . What is interesting is that progressively fewer students are studying Chinese and more are studying in Chinese (Hou, 2011) . Given that China is today one of the largest economies and more people speak a form of Chinese than any other language, why should Chinese universities be expected to teach their courses in En

FAQs

Why do students from non-English-speaking countries choose English-taught joint venture universities in China?

The study explores the reasons international students choose to enrol in Chinese joint ventures where instruction is in English, despite their countries not being English speaking.

What has changed in China’s international student mobility in recent years?

The text describes a rapid shift over the last five years, with government efforts increasing overseas student numbers and changing the profile of students studying in China.

What are the defining characteristics of joint venture higher education institutions in China?

They are campuses of foreign universities operating cooperatively with local providers, must be on the mainland, cannot be profit-oriented, require majority Chinese governance representation, and follow specific rules on degrees and diplomas.

Oct 15, 2026

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