Mobility of East Asian Students

Abstract

Although increasingly discussed in terms of globalization, as the chapters in this book attest, the reality of international education is geographically highly uneven and far from global in scope and reach. In this respect, Asia — and particularly East Asia — has a disproportionately important role to play in global mobility patterns. The majority of all international students originate from Asia and most of these come from a relatively small number of countries — China, Malaysia, Hong Kong, South Korea and Singapore. Although the figures surrounding international flows of students are contested and inconclusive (based on differing, country-specific methods of reporting), they point to one clear fact — that East Asia is the most important source of international students globally (British Council, 2004 — although see Bone, 2010; OECD, 2007; OECD, 2009). One country presently dominates demand for international student places — the People’s Republic of China — with its substantial and growing unmet domestic demand for higher education, and a seemingly insatiable desire for ‘Western’ experiences and credentials. This chapter intentionally focusses on the people who lie behind the numbers and statistics pertaining to international education and the mobility of students.