BEIJING, April 18 (UPI) -- China had 1.27 million students studying abroad at the end of 2010, the largest number for any country, the Education Ministry said.
These students, most of them self-supporting financially, were studying in more than 100 countries, China Daily reported Monday.
The most-favored destinations for Chinese students were the United States, Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Canada, Singapore, France, Germany and Russia.
The report said dozens of U.S. colleges and universities are seeing a surge in applications from Chinese students.
"Since China's economy is booming, more middle-class families can afford to send their children abroad for education," Wang Qiang, a Beijing resident who plans to send his son to study in Australia, told China Daily. "Even short-term overseas study experience could win my son better job opportunities here in the future."
