Record no of Chinese enter US PG courses, Indians far behind

 Chinese students entering post graduate schools in the US outnumbered Indians by a heavy margin, registering an 18 per cent growth last semester as against a two per cent surge by Indians, a new survey says.

The 2012 fall semester marked the seventh successive year of double-digit growth in applications from China, results of a survey by the Council of Graduate Schools, a US organisation dedicated to the advancement of graduate education and research said.
Applications from Indians increased by two per cent, following an 8 per cent increase in 2011, while the numbers of students from South Korea too registered a two per cent rise.

The survey polled all 500 US colleges and universities that were members of the Council of Graduate Schools as of January 2012.

The majority of institutions reported an increase in applications over the last year, with an average increase of 11 per cent at these institutions.Chinese undergraduate students rose in number as well.

The Institute of International Education, a non- governmental organisation based in the US, reported that Chinese students increased by 43 per cent at the undergraduate level from 2010 to 2011, which largely accounts for the growth this past year.

By November 2011, the total Chinese enrolment in the United States reached 1.58 lakhs or nearly 22 per cent of the overall international student population.

"The overall growth in applications is encouraging, but there are interesting variations between individual countries and regions," Debra W Stewart, president of the Council of Graduate Schools was quoted by the state-run China Daily here as saying.

"We need to ensure that US graduate education attracts students from around the globe by increasing outreach efforts and pursuing policies that would allow those graduates who want to remain in the United States and contribute to our economy to do so," she said.

Liu Haishan, a consultant at the New Oriental Vision Consulting Company, an overseas consulting agency said "more and more wealthy Chinese parents prefer to send their children to the United States".

"The world's top 100 universities only include two in China - Tsinghua and Peking University - but there are around 60 in the States," Liu said.

"Furthermore, you only have one chance a year to take the college entrance exam in China, but you can take the Scholastic Aptitude Test six times a year, which means a higher chance of entering a top US university"Liu also said that Chinese high school students are showing greater interest in studying abroad, with some even starting to prepare three years ahead.

"The Scholastic Aptitude Test score is not the only admission requirement. Other aspects such as social activities, are all included in the evaluation of students, so preparation begins much earlier than the application process," Liu said.

Lindsay Liang, a senior consultant at New Oriental Vision Overseas Consulting in Beijing, told China Daily that school ranking, tuition, living conditions and safety are the top concerns when parents choose to send children to study abroad.

"For example, in America, it is legal for individuals to possess firearms which is different from Chinese regulations," said Liang, suggesting students should prepare in advance for different cultures and state regulations.