Decision-Making Process of Chinese Undergraduate Students in Choosing Study Destinations Overseas

Abstract

Today’s international education market was unprecedentedly large and is expected to grow in the future. Studies conducted on how international students make decisions on study destination were growing much slower than the growth rate of the market concern; not to mention the number of specified studies conducted on particular groups of students or on traditionally unpopular study destinations such as northern European countries. Furthermore, China is the largest source country of international students in the world, it is important to understand how Chinese students make deci- sion when choosing a study place if the marketers from higher education institutions or education agencies wish to make a profit from this big cake. Though there are many studies aimed to formulate factors involved in the international students’ deci- sion-making process, merely did people adjust or update these theories that finished years ago, which may not provide accurate assumption and prediction on how Chinses students decide this matter. The theoretical framework of this thesis is based on two well-developed models and utilizes findings from up-to-date studies on Chinese students, coupled with freshly col- lected primary data, to generate a deeper insight into the decision-making process of Chinese students with concentration on undergraduate students and Finland as the study destination in order that higher education institutions in Finland and education agencies can gain better understandings on what really attract Chinese students and what affect their decisions. The thesis reveals that Chinese undergraduates decide study destination in both lin- ear and mixed fashion rather than in a strict linear sequence. Chinese students who chose Finland as the destination put educational costs as the primary concern and also value factors such as recognition of degree, natural environment and others.