Harvard University sees more Chinese students

World Today

World-renown Harvard University has seen a greater number of Chinese students over the last two decades. According to the China News Service, in 2014-2015, 690 students from the Chinese mainland were studying at Harvard, compared to 176 students in 1998.

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Siqi Moo, a student at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, said that a degree from Harvard University can open many doors.

“If I go back to China, or if I go somewhere in the Asia Pacific, I think the name ‘Harvard’ will be very strong,” she said.

Harvard has a long history with China. It hired its first Chinese teacher in 1879 and in 1928 it established the Harvard-Yenching Institute to promote higher education in Asia. In the 1950s it became one of the first American universities to establish a field of study on modern China.


CCTV’s Karina Huber filed this report

“Virtually every school at Harvard has a very significant set of engagements, teaching, research, and receiving students from China. It’s a very deep, thorough and long-term relationship with China,” said Tony Saich, Director of the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard’s Kennedy School.

Saich also said that every year, the center hosts a group of up to 40 Chinese government officials for a month as part of the special program: “China’s Leaders in Development.”

The program teaches public policy, urbanization, and democracy. Saich said it’s a good way for Chinese officials to learn about the U.S. political system and for Harvard professors to learn from their Chinese counterparts.

“Academia has an important role to play in U.S.-China relations. It gives a depth to the relationship between just the formal aspects,” he added.

Story by CCTV News