Education Abroad in China: Literature Review of Study Abroad Program Types, Outcomes and Benefits

While there has been an increase in students studying abroad in China, this increase has not been seen in the respective number of articles published in scholarly journals on education abroad in China. This paper summarizes articles from journals on the types of education abroad programs in China, organized by topic, and by the outcomes and benefits of the programs as stated in the articles. The basis for this review is relevant literature from full-text journals published from 1975 to 2013. Of 213 returns from an online search, 25 were relevant for this literature review. The benefits and outcomes of education abroad in China culled from this literature review are compared to the list of ten main outcomes of study abroad programs presented by Parsons (2010). In addition, outcomes not listed by Parsons were identified.