Diversity matters at Peking University! Every year, in celebration of the students studying on our campus from dozens of cultures around the world, Peking University organizes the International Culture Festival where students get the chance to show off what they love most about their country and their culture.

On that day, the plaza in front of the Peking University Hall is a sea of brightly decorated booths, staffed by dedicated student volunteers.

During this year's International Culture Festival, #Pekinger Sophia BAE HYEEUN, a 2018 Master's student from the School of Arts, toured the festival area interviewing student volunteers from over 50 countries for a survey asking they chose to study in China.

Sophia BAE HYEEUN

After interviewing each student, Sophia asked them to write a few words in their own language summarizing their reasons for coming to China on a Peking University t-shirt to serve as a keepsake for herself.

Sophia found that students from around the world came to China for different reasons, but most of them still had many things in common.

Some came for the quality of education, some to experience Chinese culture for themselves, and some came to see if authentic Chinese food lives up to all the hype! But, just for the day, Chinese food took a back seat to the smorgasbord of dishes from around the world available at the Food Fiesta, which Sophia more than eagerly indulged herself in.

After collecting all that information, Sophia tried to find some patterns within the answers. She found that roughly 40% of people come to China hoping to explore some cultural connection between China and their home country. European students tended to be slightly more interested in China's vast landscape and cultural heritage sites. Students from the Americas felt China was very much a mystery to them and thus wanted to better understand this country. African students tended to look to China as a model for development, worthy of studying so they might apply lessons from China's development to their own countries.

Of course, most students who come to China likely do so for a variety of reasons. Whether it's the culture, the people, the economy, or even just the food, China has a lot to offer international students and Peking University prides itself on providing an inclusive home to international students.

Whether you're currently studying here, or are thinking about applying, we hope to see you at next year's International Culture Festival!

PKU Minutes Series

PKU Minutes contains a series of Vlogs filmed by students and alumni from Peking University who are inspired by the rich campus life here in China and determined to record them from various perspectives: Diversity, Learning, Beauty, Flavor and… Stay tuned for more fabulous videos to come!