Chinese students upset by ‘preferential treatment’ universities give to foreigners
- Locals say they are being treated like second-class citizens on matters like accommodation and even the way they are assessed
- China welcomed more than 490,000 overseas students last year, mostly from developing nations
In all the years Alex Shu has spent at Capital Normal University in Beijing he has never once used the campus swimming pool. He was always told it was under maintenance – it had been since 2015 – so if he wanted to swim he would have to go to the local gym.
It came as something as a shock, therefore, when he found out from an online video recently that the university did have a working swimming pool, only it was reserved for international students.
The pool is at the International Culture Centre and the video clip shows a security guard telling Chinese students about its exclusive status.
“The centre used to be a hotel before being renovated and reserved for international students,” Shu said. “Mainland students can only get in if they are selected as an international student’s study partner. It’s not fair for us mainland students at all.”
After tens of thousands of people complained about being unable to use the pool, the university on July 18 issued a statement saying it was very small and open only to those living in the building and faculty members.
Students in mainland China are become increasingly angry at what they see as favouritism towards their foreign counterparts when it comes to facilities and privileges, with some going so far as to say they feel like second-class citizens in their own country.