China becoming largest source of foreign students to France

BEIJING - China will soon surpass Morocco to become the largest source of overseas students to France, according to a prediction by Laure Castin, an attache in charge of university cooperation at the French Embassy in China.

Currently, about 35,000 Chinese students are studying in France, and the figure is expected to reach 50,000 in 2015, according to Castin.

In 2012, the number of students from Morocco exceeded that from China by less than 3,000, showed statistics released by Campus France Agency, a French public institution responsible for promoting higher education and managing the international mobility of students.

According to the attache, 65 percent of Chinese students in France are either seeking master's degrees or doctorates, and the most popular majors are economic administration, engineering, management of public affairs and art.

More than 10,000 Chinese students obtained visas for study in France last year, and the number is expected to rise next year, when the two countries will mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations, Castin said.