The UK gets the highest number of students from China after the
US, a top UK educational official said in Beijing yesterday.
About 60,000 Chinese students are studying in the UK today, and
students' visa applications from January to September have gone up
by 12 percent year-on-year, according to John Denham, the UK
Secretary of State for Innovations Universities and Skills.
And more than 100 UK universities have entered partnerships with
Chinese counterparts to provide education, Denham said.
To attract more international students, the UK government
recently changed its policy of employment, and foreign
postgraduates can now have a paid job for one to two years after
their graduation, he said.
Creating jobs and boosting entrepreneurship are what the UK and
China both want to do, he said.
"Employability is about more than educating individuals and
giving them the skills to meet business needs. The UK and China
will cooperate to give our graduates the practical work experience
our job markets require."
Chinese Minister of Education Zhou Ji and Denham are soon
expected to issue a joint statement that would focus on higher
education, employment and vocational training.
European Commissioner for Education, Training and Youth Jan
Figel said during his visit to China last week that a record
120,000 Chinese students went to the European Union (EU) for
studies.
To attract more students from around the globe, the EU launched
the Erasmus Mundus program in 2004, which provides scholarships to
foreign students to study in EU countries.
(China Daily October 30, 2007)
