In this Inbound Insight article, we examine how Chinese outbound student mobility is being reshaped by demographic, economic, and geopolitical forces – and what this means for student accommodation providers. Drawing on insights from multiple global sources and new data from the Global Student Living Index (GSL Index), this article highlights the evolving priorities of Chinese students when selecting where to live and where to study.
A market in transformation
The Chinese outbound student market remains one of the largest in the world and has proven remarkably resilient. Total numbers are once again close to pre-pandemic levels.
Yet beneath the headline stability lies profound change. Families are becoming more strategic and more cost-conscious, destination choices are diversifying, and return on investment (ROI) now rivals prestige as a decision-making factor.
Changing priorities of Chinese students and families
Traditionally, the decision to study abroad for Chinese students (and their families) was heavily influenced by prestige, rankings, and Western destinations. Today, however, the mix of priorities is shifting and decision-making is more complex.
Increasing importance of ROI
While institutional reputation still matters, Chinese students are weighing up the outcomes of an overseas degree. Key decision factors now include:
- Employability / graduate outcomes – the ability for the degree to translate into measurable career or international mobility value.
- Cost and value for money – affordability (tuition plus living costs) is rising in importance against a backdrop of high youth unemployment in China and economic uncertainty.
- Safety, proximity and risk mitigation – visa volatility, geopolitical tensions, and safety concerns have made destinations in Asia and continental Europe increasingly appealing.
- Flexibility and multiple destination options – students are applying to more institutions and destinations in order to mitigate risk and keep options open.
Collectively, these shifts reflect a student cohort that is highly intentional, risk-aware, and pragmatic.
Destination shifts – beyond the “Big Four”
The Big Four destinations (US, UK, Australia, and Canada) remain the most popular choices for Chinese students, though recent data reveals a mixed picture with some markets experiencing decline. More importantly, aggregate figures mask a profound shift occurring beneath the surface: Chinese students are increasingly looking beyond traditional Western destinations. Key shifts across the Big Four destinations include:
- United States: The US hosted 277,398 Chinese students (including 61,552 completing Optional Practical Training and 5,517 non-degree students), in 2023/24, down 4.1% from the previous year. According to a 2025 Migration Policy Institute analysis, the U.S. rejected 36% of student-visa applications from China – a record high.
- Australia: Australia’s position has become more precarious than recent growth figures suggested. Between January and August 2025, Australia hosted 184,510 Chinese students (41,442 new enrolments and 143,068 continuing students), representing a 2.4% decline from the 189,103 Chinese students enrolled in 2024. Approval rates for Chinese ELICOS students have drastically reduced (56% in mid-2024 compared to 97% for university students).
- Canada: The number of Chinese study permit holders fell by 3% from 2023 to 2024, but have fallen by 34% since their peak of 84,975 in 2018 to 56,230 in 2024. Visa caps introduced to address housing shortages appear to have demonstrably slowed growth.
- United Kingdom: The UK hosted 149,885 Chinese students in 2023/24, making China the UK’s second-largest source market after India. However, new Chinese student enrolments dropped by 4% – from 102,795 in 2022/23 to 98,400 in 2023/24. While total numbers remain higher than pre-pandemic levels due to continuing students, the declining intake suggests the UK’s momentum may be slowing. Growth is increasingly concentrated among higher-ranked institutions.
Emerging and regional destinations gaining ground
A number of Asian and non-Anglosphere destinations are gaining traction with the Chinese market:
- Japan was host to 123,485 Chinese students in 2024 (+6.9% over 2023) – this is more than the number of Chinese students studying in Canada.
- Malaysia – Chinese applications to Malaysian institutions rose by 25% in 2024 (to 33,216) and have more than doubled since 2019.
- Thailand – The number of Chinese students in Thailand in 2024 was 28,052 – accounting for 53% of Thailand’s international student cohort.
- Europe – Several European countries (Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, and Ireland) are increasingly mentioned as serious options for Chinese students seeking affordable, high-quality, and lower-risk pathways. As an example, China was Germany’s second-largest sending market in 2024, with 38,687 students.
Drivers of change: Structural, economic and policy factors
Beyond individual student preferences and destination choices, a set of macro drivers is reshaping the Chinese outbound market:
- Demographic decline. Annual births in China have declined from around 16–18 million in the mid-2000s to 9.5 million in 2024, marking the population’s third consecutive year of decline. Fertility has dropped to roughly 1.15 children per woman, far below the replacement rate. UN demographic projections suggest China’s core university-age cohort (around 20–24) will be about one-third smaller in the mid-2020s than at its 2010 peak and could be roughly two-thirds smaller by 2050 – a demographic shift that will shrink the pool of outbound students.
- Increased domestic capacity. Parallel to this, Chinese higher-education institutions are improving, and transnational/joint programmes are growing, reducing the imperative for some families to send their children overseas.
- Economic and job-market pressures. China’s youth job market remains fragile, while the costs of overseas study are rising relative to the value. Families are increasingly cost-sensitive, with affordability and employability rising as key selection criteria.
- Geopolitics, visa policies and destination risk. Geopolitical tensions (especially US-China) and tightening visa/post-study work regimes are influencing student choices. Rising domestic nationalism and security concerns are emerging as additional constraints.
- Technology, hybrid provision and shorter pathways. Hybrid/digital education models and partial overseas/partial home models (transnational education) are growing in appeal – meaning students may spend less time physically abroad, which has implications for accommodation demand.
Accommodation search priorities
Data from the Global Student Living Index (2024 Q4) reveals both similarities and key differences in how Chinese students approach accommodation searches compared to their international peers.
Shifting priorities
Overall, international students now place less importance on traditional priorities such as condition/quality and safety/security than they did 2-3 years ago, and we have seen ‘Budget/price’ and ‘Availability of an ensuite’ rise in terms of order of priority.
For Chinese students, the core factors remain important, but ‘budget / price’ has leapfrogged these factors and is now the 2nd most important search criterion. However, it is worth noting that the proportion who prioritise ‘budget/price’ is still significantly lower than their international counterparts.
Conversely, a significantly higher proportion of Chinese students prioritise the ‘ability to choose who they live with’ and ‘recycling facilities’ compared to other international student groups. It’s also worth noting that more students across both groups say ‘I didn’t choose where I live’ in this wave.
Room type and rent
Chinese students display distinct preferences:
- Much more likely to live in studios (41% vs 27%).
- Highly likely to be funded by parents (88% vs 75%).
- Less likely to work part-time to pay rent.
Search and booking behaviour
Chinese students show distinct patterns in how they search for and book accommodation:
- Much more likely to use social media (30% vs 24%) when searching for accommodation although this has dropped across both groups from last year.
- More likely to use education agents in their search (22% vs 12%)
- Less likely to search using university websites and general searches than other groups, although university website usage has increased from 40% to 44% year-on-year
- More likely to book via education agents (20% vs 10%) or letting agencies (17% vs 10%)
- Less likely to book with university housing offices (26% vs 38%), although this figure has increased significantly in the last year
Looking Ahead
The fundamental question facing institutions is no longer whether Chinese students will study abroad – they will continue to do so in substantial numbers – but which destinations will earn their trust and their investment in an era of expanded choice and heightened expectations.
References
Australian Government, Department of Education. 2025. International Student Numbers by Country, State and Territory. International Education Data & Research. Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://www.education.gov.au/international-education-data-and-research/international-student-numbers-country-state-and-territory.
Education Malaysia Global Services. n.d. International Student Data. Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://educationmalaysia.gov.my/more/student-data/international-student-data.
Government of Canada, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). n.d. Canada – Study Permit Holders by Country of Citizenship and Year in Which Permit(s) Became Effective. Open Government Portal. Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/90115b00-f9b8-49e8-afa3-b4cff8facaee.
HESA (Higher Education Statistics Agency). n.d. Top Ten EU and Non-EU Countries of Permanent Address (Excluding the UK) in 2023/24 for HE Student Enrolments: Academic Years 2019/20 and 2023/24. HESA Data & Analysis — Where Students Come From. Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/students/where-from.
ICEF Monitor. 2024. “Market Snapshot: International Student Recruitment in China Today.” 18 July 2024.
https://monitor.icef.com/2024/07/market-snapshot-international-student-recruitment-in-china-today/.
Institute of International Education. n.d. “All Places of Origin — International Students.” Open Doors. Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://opendoorsdata.org/data/international-students/all-places-of-origin/.
Migration Policy Institute. 2025. “Amid Declining U.S. Enrollment, Many Chinese Students Cite Negative Experiences.” 10 September 2025.
https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/discrimination-chinese-students-us.
QS. n.d. “Global Student Flows.” Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://www.qs.com/global-student-flows.
Study in Japan. n.d. “Enrollment Data.” Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://www.studyinjapan.go.jp/en/statistics/enrollment/data/2504301000.html.
StudyTravel Network. 2024. “Chinese Outbound Recovery Slow, Students Considering Alternative Destinations.” StudyTravel Magazine, December 4, 2024. https://studytravel.network/magazine/news/0/31075
Studying in Germany. n.d. “Germany International Student Statistics.” Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://www.studying-in-germany.org/germany-international-student-statistics/.
The China Now. n.d. “Why Fewer Chinese Students Are Studying Abroad – and It’s Not Just About Geopolitics.” Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://www.thechinanow.com/post/why-fewer-chinese-students-are-studying-abroad-and-it-s-not-just-about-geopolitics-1.
The Star (Malaysia). 2025. “Interactive: Malaysia Sees Surge in Chinese Student Applications.” 28 April 2025.
https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2025/04/28/interactive-malaysia-sees-surge-in-chinese-student-applications.
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. n.d. “Working-Age Population — China (1950–2050).” UNdata. Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://data.un.org/Data.aspx.
University World News. 2025. “The China Factor: Growth and Risks of Students in Thailand.” 27 August 2025. Accessed 18 November 2025.
https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20250826075652386
