Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

To Stay or Not to Stay in Hong Kong: An Examination of Mainland Chinese Undergraduates’ After-Graduation Plans

  • Chapter
Internationalization of Higher Education

Part of the book series: Education in the Asia-Pacific Region: Issues, Concerns and Prospects ((EDAP,volume 28))

Abstract

Recent decades have witnessed a dramatic rise in the cross-border flow of students in search of information, knowledge and credentials. This has far-reaching academic, financial and social consequences for students and their host communities. Drawing on Ajzen’s (1991) theory of planned behaviour, this study explored a group of mainland Chinese undergraduates’ decisions and plans for their careers and lives beyond graduation from a major university in Hong Kong. Twenty-three mainland Chinese undergraduates participated in in-depth interviews about their educational experiences and the plans they had after graduation in Hong Kong. Analysis of the data revealed that most of the participants considered Hong Kong as a transition point in their lives and had no intention to settle down permanently in the city, confirming the impression that these ‘elite’ students were highly mobile or ‘floating’. In other words, they considered their educational experiences as contributing factors to the realisation of their transnational aspirations. The transnational nature of these students’ educational migration suggests that host communities such as Hong Kong consider them as not only potential human resources for the local economy but also part of their expanding social networks, which are strategically important for these communities to enhance their global influence.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behaviour. Organization Behaviour and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Altbach, P. G., & Knight, J. (2007). The internationalization of higher education: Motivations and realities. Journal of Studies in International Education, 11(3–4), 290–305.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bandura, A. (1982). Self-efficacy mechanism in human agency. American Psychologist, 37, 122–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Basch, L., Glick Schiller, N., & Szanton-Blanc, C. (1994). Nations unbound: Transnational projects, postcolonial predicaments and deterritorialized nation-states. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Gordon and Breach Science Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cheng, Y. C., Cheung, A. C. K., & Yeun, T. W. W. (2010). Development of a regional education hub: The case of Hong Kong. International Journal of Educational Management, 25(5), 474–493.

    Google Scholar 

  • de Guzman, A. B., Albela, J. A., Nieto, D. R. D., Ferrer, J. B. F., & Santons, R. N. (2006). English language learning difficulty of Korean students in a Philippine multidisciplinary university. Asia Pacific Education Review, 7(2), 151–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dimmock, C., & Leong, J. O. S. (2010). Studying overseas: Mainland Chinese students in Singapore. Compare, 40(1), 25–42.

    Google Scholar 

  • Favell, A., Feld blum, M., & Smith, M. P. (2006). The human face of global mobility: A research agenda. In M. P. Smith & A. Favell (Eds.), The human face of global mobility (pp. 1–25). New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gao, X. (2010). Strategic language learning: The roles of agency and context. Bristol, CT: Multilingual Matters.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gao, X. (2014). “Floating elites”: Interpreting mainland Chinese undergraduates’ graduation plans in Hong Kong. Asia Pacific Education Review, 15(2), 223–235.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Geng, C., & Li, H. (2012). Hong Kong’s immigration policy for mainland students and young professionals: Effectiveness and challenges. Journal of Youth Studies, 15(2), 52–62.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gu, M. (2011). Cross-border pre-service teachers in Hong Kong: ‘To be or not to be integrated, that is the problem’. Journal of Education for Teaching, 37(2), 139–154.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gu, Q., Schweisfurth, M., & Day, C. (2010). Learning and personal growth in a ‘foreign’ context: Intercultural experiences of international students. Compare, 40(1), 7–23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hendricksen, B., Rosen, D., & Aune, R. K. (2011). An analysis of friendship networks, social connectedness, homesickness, and satisfaction levels of international students. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 35(3), 281–295.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hou, Z., & Leung, A. S. (2011). Vocational aspirations of Chinese high school students and their parents’ expectations. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 79, 349–360.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kan, M. (2011). 香港高等教育為誰而設 (Whom should higher education institutions in Hong Kong serve?). http://forum.hkej.com/node/76831

  • Kim, Y. (2008). Intercultural personhood: Globalization and a way of being. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 32, 359–368.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li, M., & Bray, M. (2006). Social class and cross-border higher education: Mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong and Macau. Journal of International Migration and Integration, 7(4), 407–424.

    Google Scholar 

  • Li, M., & Bray, M. (2007). Cross-border flows of students for higher education: Push-pull factors and motivations of mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong and Macau. Higher Education, 53(6), 791–818.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lim, K., & Meier, E. B. (2012). International students’ use of social network services in the new culture: A case study with Korean youths in the United States. Asia Pacific Education Review, 13, 113–120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meier, S. T. (1991). Vocational behaviour, 1988–1990: Vocational choice, decision-making, career development interventions and assessment. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 39, 131–181.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (1994). Data management and analysis methods. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), Handbook of qualitative research (pp. 428–444). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Millar, R., & Shevlin, M. (2003). Predicting career information seeking behaviour of school pupils using the theory of planned behavior. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 62, 26–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oleksiyenko, A., Cheng, K. M., & Yip, H. K. (2013). International student mobility in Hong Kong: Public good, private good or trade in services? Studies in Higher Education, 38, 1079–1101. doi:10.1080/03075079.2011.630726.

    Google Scholar 

  • Polkinghorne, D. E. (1995). Narrative configuration in qualitative analysis. In J. A. Hatchand & R. Wisniewski (Eds.), Life history and narrative (pp. 5–23). London: Falmer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Postiglione, G. A. (2005). China’s global bridging: The transformation of university mobility between Hong Kong and the United States. Journal of Studies in International Education, 9, 5–25.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sauermann, H. (2005). Vocational choice: A decision making perspective. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 66, 273–303.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Skyrme, G. (2007). Entering the university: The differentiated experience of two Chinese international students in a New Zealand university. Studies in Higher Education, 32, 357–372.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Song, Z., Wanberg, C., Niu, X., & Xie, Y. (2006). Action-state orientation and the theory of planned behavior: A study of job search in China. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 68, 490–503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Szelenyi, K. (2006). Students without borders? Migratory decisions-making among international graduate students in the U.S. Knowledge, Technology and Policy, 19(3), 64–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taikungpao (2013). 香港8所高校錄取約1590名內地新生 (Over 1,590 mainland students were admitted by eight universities in Hong Kong as undergraduates in the forthcoming academic year). Retrieved from http://edu.takungpao.com.hk/ksjy/gk/q/2013/0724/1782922.html

  • Waters, J. L. (2008). Education, migration and cultural capital in the Chinese diaspora: Transnational students between Hong Kong and Canada. New York: Cambria Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yan, K., & Berliner, D. C. (2010). Chinese international students in the United States: Demographic trends, motivations, acculturation features and adjustment challenges. Asia Pacific Education Review, 12, 173–184.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yeoh, B. S. A., & Lin, W. (2013). Chinese migration to Singapore: Discourses and discontents in a globalizing nation-state. Asian and Pacific Migration Journal, 22(1), 31–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, 705, Meng Wah Complex, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong

    Xuesong Gao

Authors
  1. Xuesong Gao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Xuesong Gao .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Education Policy and Leadership, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, NT, Hong Kong

    Yin Cheong Cheng

  2. Department of Educational Administration and Policy, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, NT, Hong Kong

    Alan Chi Keung Cheung

  3. Department of Education Policy and Leadership, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, NT, Hong Kong

    Shun Wing Ng

Additional information

Note This chapter was partly adapted from the author’s previously published article Gao (2014) with additional data extracts and strengthened analysis. The support from the SEED Funding Programme for Basic Research at the University of Hong Kong (201111159073) was appreciated.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Singapore

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Gao, X. (2016). To Stay or Not to Stay in Hong Kong: An Examination of Mainland Chinese Undergraduates’ After-Graduation Plans. In: Cheng, Y., Cheung, A., Ng, S. (eds) Internationalization of Higher Education. Education in the Asia-Pacific Region: Issues, Concerns and Prospects, vol 28. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-667-6_10

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-667-6_10

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-287-666-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-287-667-6

  • eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation