Mr. Wang Wei, CEO of EWIE and Wiseway International, was interviewed by The PIE News at the beginning of the year. He discussed the impact of the epidemic on international education, including the effects on students going abroad, changes in destination countries, employment opportunities for returning students, and the prospects of the study abroad industry in China, which brought us many new perspectives and thoughts.
In the interview, Mr. Wang Wei first briefly introduced EWIE. Founded in 1999, Wiseway has been dedicated to international educational research and services for over 22 years. EWIE have 15 offices in China, mainly conducting enrollment work for 15 countries including the United Kingdom and the United States. In 2008, the customer base of EWIE expanded from students and parents to educational institutions, starting with an international preparatory course, and has been operating in 10 Chinese universities, recruiting approximately 800 to 1000 students annually. As an international educational research and service institution, EWIE cover China’s educational research, project development, and university cooperation. We always insist on directly serving students and providing services to universities, from long-term academic education to shorter semester exchanges and two-week learning experience projects.
Mr. Wang Wei, an expert in the international education in China, shared his views on the impact of the epidemic on the employment of international students. He noted that the outlook for students studying abroad is not optimistic, mainly due to the impact of COVID-19 on the tourism industry. The relaxed attitude adopted by western society has led many students and parents to worry about the safety problems after going abroad. In addition, the international relations between China, the United States, and China Australia also have a certain impact on the choices of students. However, in the medium to long term, the number of students studying abroad each year will continue to increase, possibly due to government encouragement and school funding, which is more evident in short-term exchange programs. At present, the UK is definitely the preferred destination for studying abroad. British universities also have many joint training programs in China, such as 2+2 or 3+1 programs. China is becoming an economic powerhouse, and universities have a large amount of funding to support international projects, so some students choose to study in China. After completing the project, many students choose to continue pursuing a master’s or even doctoral degree in the UK, which also contributes to the number of students studying in the UK. Regarding the domestic job market, the pressure on young graduates will only increase. After returning to China, students usually directly enter the IT and business fields, and now many students have also gone to the popular majors of finance and banking. However, the difficulty in finding jobs is not all because of COVID-19. The changes in China’s social and political policies will also affect all aspects of the economy and thus affect the employment of graduates.
In the interview, Mr. Wang Wei discussed the market prospects and existing challenges of the study abroad industry in China. He believes that while this market is not currently a priority for domestic universities and enrollment agencies, the number of students studying in China will gradually increase. This is evident from the number of students from neighboring Asia coming to China is growing. However, due to the current low fees charged by Chinese universities for international students, resulting in high project operating costs, a successful business model has not yet been found. The East and West are also exploring together with domestic universities, hoping to provide more diversified services for universities in the near future, and bring students a higher quality and multi-level international experience.
If you would like to learn more about the detailed content of this interview and the cutting-edge international education news, please visit The PIE News official website: https://thepienews.com/pie-chat/wang-wei/