Re)writing the Future : Creating Chinese International Students at Home

Since the implementation of the Open Door Policy, studying abroad, or Chinese Liuxue, has undergone significant transitions. This book reveals how Chinese students prepare for Western universities through international schooling. It explores their motivations and strategies within China’s evolving educational landscape.

Using surveys, interviews, field observations, and policy analysis, the authors uncover how families navigate the tension between meritocracy and global higher education. Through an innovative approach to analyzing students’ pre-mobility experiences, the authors trace students’ pathways through international schools and agencies, showing how these institutions bridge the Chinese and Western educational systems. Key insights include the ‘field-habitus match’ concept, which explains successful and complex transitions, and how international education adapts to local values.

This book is an essential resource for educators, international school administrators, policymakers, and scholars of the sociology of education, transnational studies, and Asian education. It is also useful for librarians and professionals in global student services.

Xiaoyuan Li is an assistant professor at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, City University of Macau. Her research interests include international education, intercultural communication, and cultural studies.

Kun Dai is an assistant professor at the Faculty of Education, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research interests are international education, higher education, and education policy.