Article published in:
Problematizing Language Policy and Practice in EMI and Transnational Higher Education: Challenges and Possibilities
Edited by Curtis Green-Eneix, Peter I. De Costa and Wendy Li
[Australian Review of Applied Linguistics 44:2] 2021
► pp. 180–207

“We have no Chinese classmates”

International students, internationalization, and medium of instruction in Chinese universities

| Yangzhou University
| Universiti Brunei Darussalam

This paper draws on a small-scale qualitative study with international students enrolled in various English- and Chinese-medium instruction programs in Chinese universities. It seeks to explore these students’ educational experiences and their perceptions of China and China’s higher education. Our study provides ample evidence about the irrelevance of Chinese language in the current policies and practices of Chinese universities regarding internationalization and international students. It also counters earlier studies that show how deeply rooted the discourses of native speaker and native-speaking varieties of English are in English-medium-instruction programs around the world. All in all, the paper makes theoretical and empirical contributions to the emerging literature on international students’ education and academic experiences in China. Through accounts obtained from international students of varied backgrounds, the paper also sheds light on nuances of internationalization, medium of instruction, and academic mobilities.

Keywords: China, international students, international student mobility, EMI, CMI, medium of instruction, internationalization of higher education, Chinese universities
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction: China, internationalization of higher education, and international students
  • 2.CMI, EMI, English, and Chinese: Complementary and hierarchical
  • 3.International students’ educational experiences in Chinese higher education
  • 4.Our research and an overview of participants
  • 5.China as a desirable place: The root-taking of a new dominant discourse
  • 6.English and EMI are dominant, Chinese (though important) is largely irrelevant
  • 7.Studying in China: Few to no Chinese classmates, and hard to communicate with Chinese
  • 8.Studying in China: Ample scholarship, easy to get admitted, but academic quality is questionable
  • 9.Further discussion and concluding thoughts: Engaging (with) China as a rising dominant destination for international students
    • 9.1China as a desirable destination for international education: Yes and no
    • 9.2China’s internationalization of higher education, English, Chinese, EMI, and CMI
    • 9.3Countering established views in EMI in higher education
    • 9.4Bringing together the above nuances
  • Note
  • References
Published online: 07 July 2021
https://doi.org/10.1075/aral.20091.liu
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