Chinese Education: Indian students increasingly make China their destination

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02:36

Figures show China has become the top education destination for Indian students, surpassing the UK and the US. As CGTN's Li Jianhua reports, Indian students think education here in China is more cost-effective and could give them an edge.

India and China, often seen as competitors, are learning from each other.

An increasing number of Indian students are coming to China. Statistics show more than 18-thousand Indian students studied in China in 2016, a number surpassing that of the UK for the first time.

ZHANG XIAOYU COMMUNICATION UNIVERSITY OF CHINA "The education fee in China is very competitive compared to the UK and the US, together with the student visa policies. After President Trump took office, the student visa policy is much tighter than before. And after Brexit, the (UK does not welcome) international students to join their job markets."

Apart from affordable tuition fees, the language capabilities and skill sets they gain while in China are also believed to make them more competitive.

ARCHANA BHATT STUDENT, BEIJING FOREIGN STUDIES UNIVERSITY "First of all because of the language, because in India there is much more demand in Chinese language. The other thing is if I keep in touch with international business, I can do both with language and international business major."

India and China don't see eye to eye on certain issues, in particular, two months of border-related tensions last year, but the younger generation doesn't think of each other as competitors.

ULLAS ASHWANI KINGER STUDENT, BEIJING FOREIGN STUDIES UNIVERSITY "The industries are quite specifically divided between India and China. For example, India is good at IT and software-related issues and software-related industries; whereas, China is better at hardware-related industries and manufacturing."

Experts say most Indians students in China are from wealthy families. But that opportunity could be extended to many others if the country joins the Belt and Road initiative, as the Silk Road Fund offers scholarships.

LI JIANHUA BEIJING "An increasing number of Indian students are choosing to study in China. Languages and medicine are the two majors of choice. They believe studying in China is more cost-effective and could give them a leg up over their peers. LJH, CGTN, BJ."