On October 21, USCET held its second working group roundtable with representatives from US-China joint-venture universities and American-run academic programs in China. The session focused on assessing the current landscape for American graduate students, faculty, and researchers seeking academic experience in China.
Participants emphasized that while there are signs of renewed interest in academic travel to China, particularly at the undergraduate level and within certain programs, the overall number of American students in China remains low. In particular, advanced language training and graduate-level programs remain significantly below pre-pandemic levels. The steady disappearance of traditional funding sources for language study and fieldwork has made it difficult for students and early-career scholars to pursue long-term, in-country work and research.
The conversation identified a range of factors restricting academic engagement, including the constrained research environment in China and increased bureaucratic barriers at Chinese institutions. Also discussed were the challenges emanating from the United States, including institutional hesitancy, perceptions of risk, and heightened compliance requirements.
The discussion highlighted the fact that academic research and fieldwork remain possible in China: long-standing academic partnerships and joint-venture campuses continue to provide important anchors for academic activity. Participants noted that access, while uneven, often depends on topic selection, institutional affiliation, and approach. Joint venture campuses can serve as important platforms for collaboration, language acquisition, and firsthand learning.
Looking ahead, participants stressed the importance of coordinated, realistic strategies to sustain meaningful academic exchange. These include revitalizing funding mechanisms for language and area studies, clarifying acceptable forms of engagement for universities and researchers, and framing China-related education within a broader global context that extends beyond bilateral tensions. Clearer guidance from government stakeholders and renewed support for people-to-people exchange were viewed as essential to ensuring a sustainable future for US academic study in China.