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Brain Drain
Of great concern to many Chinese educators and economists is the rapid outflow of "brains ” — the brain drain.
Education has always been perceived as the engine room of development and the last 5 decades has seen a concentrated effort by the Government to improve the average level of education. One of the major drawbacks has been the abysmal illiteracy rate which plagued “New China” from the beginning. However, recently, major advances have been made. For example, the proportion of illiterate and semi-illiterate people to the total population aged 15 years and older has dropped, from 15.9% in 1990 to 12.1% in 1997. However, the average Chinese individual will study for only 5.4 years. Despite this, in urban areas residents aged 15 years and older with middle and high school education make up 29.7% and 20.7% respectively, while those with a tertiary education account for 7.5% of the population. Competition to enter university is fierce and begins during the final years of elementary school. Naturally, only the very smartest enter the university system which currently does not contain enough places for all those who graduate from high school. After entry, in order to continue studying, the student will often need to compete for a place at a foreign institution or to be awarded a foreign corporate scholarship.
The average Chinese university student has a strong desire to further their studies overseas, especially in the US. This desire is based on the premise that not only will they receive a higher salary (in China) but that they will have opportunities to work and live overseas, earning even more money. This desire is being pandered to, not only by the innumerable scholarships offered by US universities, but also by the recent development of Educational Bank Loans offered by Chinese banks. Education is not free in China, and many parents see better value for their money in a foreign education. American institutions hold a prestigious position within the world of tertiary education in China, not necessarily because of their academic excellence, but because they offer scholarships and assistant teaching positions (which include school tuition and/or minimal living expenses). Many students would be just as happy to study in Australia, Canada or Europe, but fewer scholarships exist. It is the corporate structure of American tertiary education which offers Chinese students the most opportunities.
Not only are the universities directly recruiting, they are supported by many large multinational and US-based companies. Some Chinese educators are concerned by the proliferation of foreign-funded scholarships. Their concern is that the "cream" of Chinese talent will be co-opted by the foreign companies which sponsor the scholarships. It is not necessarily the overseas university scholarships which worry the professors, but those that have been established in Chinese universities by companies like Microsoft, Mercedes-Benz, IBM, and Motorola. One Chinese professor is uneasy about this development because "... domestic enterprises cannot offer close to the same number or size of scholarships”, and he is worried that foreign companies will attract China's top students, leaving none for domestic enterprises. Not surprisingly, many Chinese universities are unwilling to disclose details about the amounts and types of foreign scholarships being offered. Apparently Qinghua University offers the largest number of scholarships, over 100, ranging from RMB1.000 (USD120) to RMB5.000 (USD600). Of these, 80% to 90% arc offered by foreign companies. Likewise, the majority of scholarships at Beijing University are foreign corporate scholarships. The majority of these scholarships are in disciplines related to the sponsor's product or market.
Humanities, Languages and Fine Arts are already underfunded and many lack any scholarships at all. A professor at Beijing Normal University also cautioned that foreign corporate scholarships could have adverse effects for China's economic development. He gave the example of an automotive technology centre at an important Chinese university that accepted a grant from a Japanese company which retained the rights to any research published by recipients of the grant. From the student’s perspective, the corporate scholarship offers more than just education. Said one student, "... as time goes by I am paying more attention to this company ... generous salary and bright future that it offers are very attractive to me. The university really isn’t able to control whether or not its students work for foreign companies after they graduate”.
The other side of this coin is China’s recent attempts to recruit scientists from overseas. In order to tempt up to 300 scientists living abroad, the Government is spending RMB600m (USD72.55m) over the next 3 years. Recruits will be awarded a research grant worth around RMB2m (USD241.838) to work with the Chinese Academy of Sciences on research under the National Innovation Project. Earlier this year, China announced it would invest RMB5b (USD604.59m) on the National Innovation Project by the end of 2000. What is most interesting about this situation, both the National Innovation Project and the recruitment drive, is the unspoken belief among educators that this is particularly aimed at the Chinese nationals already living and working or studying overseas. Overseas Chinese are considered ethnic Chinese and granted permanent residence within China. Many of these overseas Chinese are individuals who were originally Chinese nationals, born in China but now owners of foreign passports. Currently, they are being actively courted by the Government, not only for their skills, but also for their revenue. Over the past 20 years, China has attracted nearly USD260b in utilized foreign investment, with over 70% of this investment coming from overseas Chinese.
There exists a general belief that most students who leave to study overseas tend not to return. However, few foreign embassies in China accumulate statistics on this area, and some state that there are no reliable statistics available. Statistics from various embassies in China do show that there continues to be a large number of Chinese nationals applying for and receiving visas to study overseas (see figures below). If even half of these individuals remain overseas, there will be a corresponding lack of talent and skill in China. The “brain drain” is a very real possibility.
