What Are the 2021 Study Abroad Trends? What Are International Students Like?

In 2020, many unexpected things happened. Amid all those changes, study abroad also shifted, especially under the broader impact of the pandemic. The profile of international students changed in many ways as well.

Today, we’ve summarized some key characteristics of international students and current study abroad trends. Let’s take a look.

First, in terms of study abroad goals, many Chinese students choose to pursue a master’s degree or higher overseas. That said, the number of students studying abroad at the undergraduate level has remained basically stable. By comparison, the number of students going abroad for primary and secondary school has increased.

Second, as mentioned above, the growing number of primary and secondary school students studying abroad shows a trend toward younger international students. The reason is straightforward: many families are now relatively well-off, and most parents want their children to receive a better education. As a result, they actively seek higher-quality educational resources, and educational ideas are also continuing to evolve.

Third, from the perspective of overseas universities, the requirements for domestic students remain relatively high. Admissions are mostly concentrated in institutions with stronger educational resources, such as top Chinese universities under the Double First-Class initiative. At the same time, students with previous study abroad experience are often given greater consideration in admissions.

Fourth, in terms of majors, science and engineering and business remain the main choices for future international students, including management, economics, and business-related fields.

Fifth, combining the points above, we can draw a basic conclusion: the study abroad population is still concentrated in families with upper-middle income. This is influenced not only by financial conditions, but also by parents’ educational background, family educational resources, and the learning environment at home. These are all major factors affecting whether a child studies abroad.

Research findings also show that there really are not that many families choosing overseas study from an ordinary household background.

Sixth, finally, let’s talk about students’ own choices. Although we mentioned earlier that international students are gradually becoming younger, a clear trend is also emerging toward higher academic qualifications among study abroad students.

This is reflected not only in children’s willingness to study abroad, but also in their growing independence in making that choice. They have very clear plans and goals for their future. From this, we can conclude that while parents still influence their children’s study abroad decisions at the early stage, that influence gradually weakens as the child grows older, and parents increasingly respect the child’s own wishes.