Thinking Globally

By Li Fangfang

Rick Dunham， a former correspondent for BusinessWeek， has been working as a U.S. visiting professor of journalism at Beijing-based Tsinghua University since 2012. He found a big difference between Chinese and U.S. students： Chinese students usually study with an international view， while most of their U.S. peers dont.

“Chinese students are much more focused on the entire world and have much more understanding of the world beyond China than U.S. students do beyond the United States，”Dunham told Beijing Review.

Zhang Rui is one of those Chinese students. Amid tightened restrictions that made it harder for Chinese students to get U.S. visas， Zhang successfully got to study for a masters degree in statistics at Columbia University in New York in 2017.

“With such an alien cultural context， I was able to learn something totally different，” Zhang told Beijing Review. He didnt compare the two countries on the basis of which one was better or worse， but just tried to learn and understand the differences.

“China and the United States will be very important for the world in the coming decades. They communicate， cooperate and compete in various industries. If I can manage my work and life well in both coun- tries， I will be more confi dent wherever I go，”Zhang said.

Challenges from differences

Zhang found that professors and students were quite different from their Chinese counterparts in terms of their academic attitude and values.

“Chinese university students are more practical. Mostly we talk about future jobs which will always be the priority to judge the value of our courses， while it is more interest-oriented here in the States，” Zhang said. “You can feel that professors here really love what they are doing.”

“Among my Chinese colleagues， its much more about the teacher speaking and the students listening and learning.” Dunham said.

“Its a different style of learning and I have to be ready in case my students dont really have any kind of input or dont have questions，” he said.

With teaching experience in both China and the United States， he fi nds U.S. classrooms more interactive， as U.S. students tend to speak up and talk back to professors.

Shao Sirui， who also graduated from Columbia University， appreciated that U.S. universities encouraged a critical mind. “Many Chinese students tend to follow orders and other peoples footprints，” Shao said.

She liked the U.S. academic atmosphere where students decisions are mainly based on their interests. Echoing Zhangs observations， she also felt her classmates in the United States cared less about practical gains and losses.

Shao began her studies as a foreign student after graduating from a Chinese high school. She went to the University of Alabama， majored in finance and was eventually admitted into Columbia for a major in journalism.

“My U.S. classmates thought more about how to influence other people by their acts，”Shao told Beijing Review.

Zhang added， “U.S. students tend to think about individual interests instead of collective interests， while the Chinese educational method and system taught me to learn to bear hardships.”

Known as the toughest exam， Chinas college entrance exam， or gaokao， directly determines which universities students can go to or whether they can go at all， which creates tremendous pressure for students to work as hard as they can. Chinese students often joke that if they can pass gaokao， they can do anything.

After being a professor in China for over six years， Dunham sees Chinese students as very hardworking and serious about school. “Theyre not here to play， they are here to learn， while college for U.S. students is more about their life beyond just the classroom.”

All about the mindset

It was a common challenge for Zhang and Shao to blend into local life in the United States due to the language barrier and cultural differences. They eventually resolved to talk more and dare to fail.

“I purposefully memorized price tags and names in supermarkets because I thought it would help me as a newcomer to get involved in the life here，” Zhang said. He would also read as much as possible. “I wanted to know the rules here.”

For Shao， she didnt make many distinctions， “I thought everyone was the same， so my transition was very natural.” She challenged herself to try new things and didnt like setting any limits for herself.

“I havent fix myself to any certain country so far，” Shao said.

Zhang discovered that his interest lies in the fi eld of investment. He doesnt have a specif ic plan about returning to China. “I will probably work in the United States for f ive years and see where opportunities take me.”

Wang Mengyi started her U.S. life as a high school student and currently is a senior at the University of California， Berkeley.

“As far as I know， those who are interested in science and technology and fi nance can fi nd lots of job opportunities here，” she said， “while many of those who want to found a startup will usually choose to return to China.”

Expecting to work in Silicon Valley after graduation， Wang is very willing to blend the essence of the two cultures to form her own values.

“I appreciate some traditional Chinese values， such as respecting the elderly， including young people taking care of their parents； while in the United States， I like it that people are not judged by their position on the social ladder，”she told Beijing Review.

Last year， more than 360，000 Chinese students were enrolled in U.S. higher education institutions， the largest number among all countries and still on the rise. In contrast， there were only about 12，000 U.S. students in China.

Dunham said he believes this is partly due to language. “Without Chinese language skills， its very hard for U.S. students to apply to universities in China，” he said.

“The fi rst step has to be more and more students learning Chinese in U.S. elementary and high schools. If they understand the opportunities offered by studying in China， I think more students would come， particularly because of the roles of China and the United States in the global economy，”Dunham added.

But he believes this process will take years to develop on the U.S. side. “Chinese companies and institutions need to work on that，”he said. “Chinese students understand the opportunities of studying in the United States. But I dont think U.S. students in high school or even undergraduate fully understand this right now.”