Nearly two dozen countries to join tour

Officials from universities around the world are expected to tour five cities in China, including Beijing, Xi’an and Chengdu, from March 24 to April 1, the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange said on Tuesday.

More than 200 universities, colleges and educational institutions from 23 countries and regions will attend the annual China International Education Exhibition Tour, one of the largest such events in China,?Cheng Jiacai, director of the center under the Ministry of Education, said at a news conference.

“Representatives from six countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative have also signed up for the tour in order to further promote educational exchanges and resource sharing between China and economies involved with the initiative,” Cheng said.

Student admission officers and visa experts will provide parents and students with professional guidance on school choice, mental preparedness and tips on how to successfully study abroad during the tour, he said.

Cheng said that as the number of international students increases over the years, they have become an important conduit for China’s cultural exchanges with other countries.

Since the first tour was held in 1999, the annual event has accumulatively attracted more than 2,000 universities and institutions from 55 countries and regions as well as around 1.45 million parents and students in China, according to Cheng.

First Secretary Kim Ursu of the Canadian Embassy in China said about 142,000 students from China studied in Canada in 2017, accounting for one-third of all international students in the country.

“Compared with other English-speaking countries, the price of education in Canada is cheaper,” Ursu said. “The country also offers the most flexible policies for overseas students to work in Canada during their study and after graduation,” she added.