Why Chinese Students Aren’t a Threat

A major clash between China and the United States is inevitable. At least, that’s what one would think from reading the Western press: China is investing heavily in cutting-edge technology, engaging in territorial expansion in the South China Sea, and including thinly veiled references to the United States in national strategic plans.

U.S. policy makers are also adopting an adversarial stance, as when the FBI director Christopher Wray commented before Congress that students from China studying in America could pose a national security risk. Indeed, given China’s expressed goal of technological leadership, having scores of students come to the United States to study seems like an obvious part of its plan. But Wray’s comment starts with an assumption that Chinese individuals are a monolithic force, moving in lockstep with the Chinese government.

That assumption, however, is misguided. And if we aren’t careful, the United States will squander one of its strategic advantages: the good will it has with China’s best and brightest.

First, it is important to note that it’s really tough to figure out public opinion in China. Everyone in China knows that speech and the press, including “private” messages on social-media platforms, are closely monitored. No Chinese individuals are willing to speak to Western reporters the way they speak offline to their closest friends and family members. Even Chinese students in the States feel the pressure to be careful about what they say, if not directly from the watchful eye of Chinese embassies then from the memory of the University of Maryland student from China who praised the United States in her graduation speech. She was widely criticized on Chinese social media and felt the need to publicly issue an apology.

And yet, the actions of students from China may speak louder than their words.

Let’s examine the teenagers from China who want to study in the United States. In many ways, they follow the same music, sports, movies, and TV shows that American students do. But their preparation for college is significantly different in one respect: cost. They have probably paid for multiple years of extra English lessons, various extracurricular activities, and expensive tuition at “international” high-school programs that prepare them to apply abroad. When they take the SAT or ACT, they usually have to fly to another country, and most students take those exams, as well as the TOEFL, several times.

In addition, the students have potentially paid $10,000 or more for professional application advice from a college-advising agent. And all of this is for the privilege of applying to American institutions that charge them more — in some cases more than double — than what they charge domestic students. For many applicants from China, U.S. college tuition, which they pay in cash, is the biggest expense their families will ever have.

Why would a family do that, particularly since college in China is relatively inexpensive? Here’s the simple reason: Parents of means in China don’t see higher education in China as worth it. First, students have to go through a brutal process to apply (the infamous gaokao, the national college entrance exam). And then, if successful, they must choose their majors before they enroll, and in most cases, can never switch. Students must also take part in military-style exercises from time to time while navigating a restrictive academic environment.

To an ambitious student in China, an American university stands for ideals most Americans would agree with. It’s seen as an open environment, a unique chance to make friends and be intellectually curious, and a place where access to information is unfettered and individuals of all groups can be challenged but also accepted. Thanks to social media, students in China see what life is like in the United States from friends and family members who have gone before them. In short, students from China, with the tremendous financial support and sacrifice of their families, come because they are attracted by the culture of American higher education.

So what happens when these students arrive? First, they may find out that their high standardized-test scores don’t guarantee success in even basic English conversations. As a result, Chinese students self-segregate into student groups that have been maligned as being puppets of the Chinese government. These students never improve their English, and as a result, their exposure to what is great about America is stunted.

One survey said that 40 percent of international students never make friends with Americans. If you sacrificed to move to the other side of the world with great hope only to find that the hosts, while perhaps polite, never took a personal interest in you, you’d be disappointed, too. It may be that the Chinese government is involved in some Chinese student groups, but students only join them because they are looking for friends. It’s definitely not the reason so many 18-year-olds are coming to the United States for college.

Similarly, it’s become common in the press to read that many graduates from China are now returning home because they have better economic prospects there. Here’s what any American college career-services office can confirm: Almost all students from China want to stay in the United States after graduation, and they return to China only when they run out of viable options. The ultimate goal is visa sponsorship by an American company, even though visa rules inhibit the ability of a top performer to switch jobs the way American workers would do without a second thought. But note: Even self-segregation on American campuses and a challenging post-graduation work environment do not mean that students from China want to return home.

I don’t doubt that there are real examples of corporate and military espionage, and those can be handled on an individual basis. But if we’re going to approach a group of individuals with universal suspicion while they are demonstrating fealty to our institutions through their sacrifices, work ethic, and — more bluntly — their pocketbooks, we will squelch the innumerable examples of how students from China will bless us with their hard work and infectious mirth.

For most of China’s modern history, Chinese students didn’t have options. A combination of crushing poverty and restrictions on travel prevented most from realizing their dreams. But now many do have options, and we have to keep our doors open to them. This is critical not just because of the economic growth they bring, the companies they join and start, or the good feelings we get from being a beacon of opportunity. It is critical because, in the years to come, the fact that top students in China can still vote with their feet may serve as a primary moderating force in that country.

We should remember that the strength of American higher education lies in its culture of open inquiry and academic freedom. It is those traits that attract Chinese students — indeed all international students — to the United States in the first place, and we should do what we can to promote them. Ultimately, when it comes to welcoming students from China, we cannot forget the management maxim that culture eats strategy for breakfast.

Terry Crawford is the co-founder and chief executive of InitialView, a company that records and uploads video interviews with international students who are applying to American institutions.