Table Of ContentEast-West Crosscurrents in Higher Education
Cui Bian
International
Students in French
Universities and
Grandes Écoles: A
Comparative Study
East-West Crosscurrents in Higher Education
Series editor
Ruth Hayhoe, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
This book series focuses on higher education crosscurrents between Asia and the
West, including traditional comprehensive universities, normal universities for
teachers, higher vocational institutions, community colleges, distance and on-line
universities and all the differing approaches to higher education emerging under
processes of massification and diversification. It gives attention to the ways in
which the Asian context shapes the internationalization of higher education and the
response to globalization differently from that of the West, as well as new phenom-
ena that are arising in the interface between these two broad regions, such as higher
education hubs and regional networks of collaboration. Lastly, it will highlight the
growing reciprocity between these two regions, whose higher education systems
have grown from such deeply different historical roots.
Higher Education has deep roots in the cultures and civilizations of diverse
regions of the world, but perhaps the most influential models shaping contem-
porary globalization come from Europe and China. Universities established in
Europe in the Middle Ages have developed into what is now described as the
“global research university,” a model profoundly shaped by 19th century Germany
and 20th century America, and spread around the world both through colonization
and the emulation of its scientific achievements and contribution to nation build-
ing. A millennium earlier China spawned another influential model, characterized
by close integration within a meritocratic bureaucracy that entrusted governance to
those who could demonstrate their knowledge through written examinations. The
Chinese model was greatly admired in Europe from the time it was introduced in
the 16th century, and one can see its contours in what Burton Clark described as
the “continental model” in contradistinction to the “Anglo-American model” epit-
omized in the global research university.
What has become clear in the maelstrom of globalization, which has stimu-
lated the growth of a global knowledge economy and created circumstances where
nations consider higher education as crucial to remaining competitive, is that the
integration of core features from both models would be optimal: from Asia, a tra-
dition of strong state support for and involvement in higher education, which is
crucial for good governance and social advancement; and from Europe and North
America, the ideas of university autonomy and academic freedom, which are
essential to promoting scientific creativity and innovation.
More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/13844
Cui Bian
International Students
in French Universities
and Grandes Écoles:
A Comparative Study
1 3
Cui Bian
Institute of Education
Xiamen University
Xiamen, Fujian
China
ISSN 2364-6810 ISSN 2364-6829 (electronic)
East-West Crosscurrents in Higher Education
ISBN 978-981-10-1132-0 ISBN 978-981-10-1134-4 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-1134-4
Jointly published with Higher Education Press
Library of Congress Control Number: 2016942789
© Higher Education Press and Springer Science+Business Media Singapore 2017
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Foreword
What has a book about international students in French higher education to do
with East–West Crosscurrents in Higher Education? Much more than meets the
eye, as I explain in this preface to a fascinating new book that compares the way
in which France’s elite and influential grandes écoles attract international students
in contrast to its more populist and accessible universities. The first point to note
is the striking difference between France’s higher education system and that of the
Anglophone world. Burton Clark, a leading theorist in comparative higher educa-
tion, distinguished between continental patterns where higher education is closely
coordinated with the state and indeed integrated within the state bureaucracy and
Anglo–American patterns that are characterized by greater autonomy and stronger
legal person status. France’s grandes écoles in a sense epitomize the continental
model, with their highly selective recruitment system through a unified written
examination and close affiliation with major state ministries, which are commit-
ted to employing the majority of their graduates. Although these institutions were
largely created after the revolution to serve a purposeful process of moderniza-
tion, there can be little doubt that they were indirectly influenced by the Confucian
model of civil service examinations for the formation of scholar officials who held
important responsibilities within the imperial bureaucracy. France’s strong com-
mitment to education as a public good, serving the higher interests of the state,
has given it a very different approach to the recruitment of international students
than that of the Anglophone world, which is increasingly oriented towards viewing
international students as a commercial good.
Where East–West Crosscurrents are evident in this volume is in the story of
the author, a young scholar from China, fluent in both English and French, who
completed both MA and Ph.D. degrees in France, with a particular focus on
understanding the international student experience. Her MA thesis compared the
experience of international students in France and China, two renowned countries
of culture that attract large numbers of students from around the world who are
drawn to the richness of their history and civilizational influences (Bian 2013). In
her doctoral thesis, Dr. Bian focused her attention on the experience of interna-
tional students in France, as she had become aware of how little understanding
v
vi Foreword
there was in international higher education circles of France’s unique dual-track
system of higher education. Beginning with a compelling historical account
of the development of France’s dual system, she goes on to create a framework
for comparative analysis that draws on neoinstitutionalism, world-system the-
ory, international relations theory, and concepts of branding. In the case studies
of two grandes écoles and two universities, comparison takes place on two lev-
els: between the approaches to international student recruitment adopted by these
two distinct types of institution on the first level, and then between the French
approach and that of the Anglophone world. Rich empirical data drawn from inter-
views with institutional leaders, faculty, and international students themselves
provides a profile that shows both the persistence of strong elements of France’s
unique tradition and adaptations in response to the external pressures coming from
both Europe’s Bologna Process and the broader forces of globalization.
Readers will find this remarkable effort of a young Chinese scholar to create a
bridge of understanding between the Francophone and Anglophone higher educa-
tion system both engaging and illuminating.
Toronto, Canada Ruth Hayhoe
References
Bian C. (2013). Study abroad as self-development: an analysis of international students’ experi-
ences in China and France. Frontiers of Education in China, 8(3), 448–477.
Creswell, J.W. (2012). Qualitative inquiry and research design: choosing among five approaches.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Preface
As with every artistic creation, in order to understand the product, especially the
hidden message, we should focus on the artists’ intention and the creation process.
No studies are value-free and the values of the inquirers and their biases in qualita-
tive research should be detailed as well as the “value-laden nature of information”
collected from the research field. (Creswell 2012, p. 20)
The research topic in this book didn’t come from nowhere; it is closely related
to my personal experience abroad and has evolved as a research interest during
years of study. I’ve been studying in France since 2008 and the longer I’ve stayed
here, the more I’ve realized how little knowledge of the higher education system
I had acquired before coming to France. I succeeded in my application to study
in France thanks to an intermediary agency that helps Chinese students prepare
all the documents, language tests, and interviews; sometimes it even chooses the
university for applicants. To be honest, until the moment of my arrival at the air-
port in Paris, I just knew that I would take intensive French courses for a year in
a language training center affiliated to a French university. As the majority of my
classmates at that time followed the same trajectory as mine, I used to think it was
the only way.
Later when I enrolled in postgraduate study, I luckily got a part-time job in
the student service center, helping international students who had just arrived in
France with their problems related to the resident card application, accommoda-
tion, social insurance and health care, and so on. Thanks to this job, I realized
that in addition to my type of international students, there were “others” such as
exchange students, students for courses taught in English and “do-it-yourself”
students who prepared the application all by themselves. Meanwhile, their indi-
vidual experiences and their difficulties had aroused my personal interest in the
international student population. Moreover, considering my previous studying
and teaching experience in universities in China, it seemed interesting to con-
duct a comparative study and that was how my Master’s thesis was initiated. With
the guidance of my supervisor Dr. Régis Malet, we analyzed with a comparative
approach, data collected in interviews with two groups of international students
in France and in China. The study analysis showed that the process of students’
vii
viii Preface
preparation abroad, their experiences in the host country, and their personal trans-
formation were closely related to the different profiles of international students.
Considering that the study concentrated on the students’ individual experiences,
we realized that the profiles of the interview participants might influence the find-
ings and more important, we found that the hosting contexts both at social and
institutional levels had had an important impact on the students’ experience. We
thought more profound study should be conducted on this research subject from
different perspectives. However, the complex problems that could be encountered
by the many differences in terms of social, political, economic, cultural, and edu-
cational aspects in France and in China, made us give up the international com-
parative perspective. After having discussed this with my doctoral supervisors
Dr. Régis Malet and Dr. Ruth Hayhoe, we decided to work on an intranational
comparative scale of international student populations in grandes écoles and uni-
versities in France. To sum up, the study was initiated by personal curiosity and
conducted with an exploratory and reflective attitude, during which cumulative
knowledge and practice were considered indispensable.
The book is divided into five chapters and starts with the presentation of the
research background, central research questions and objectives, and the signifi-
cance and limitations of the study. The introduction includes as well a snapshot
of the international students in France and French policies in promoting inbound
student mobility at the national, European, and global levels. The second chapter
of the book contains a major review of studies related to three main research sub-
jects: internationalization of higher education, the French higher education system,
and international student mobility. The third chapter explains the process of build-
ing a conceptual framework, and then presents and justifies the theories employed
in this study. The fourth chapter analyzes the empirical data collected from the
research sites to reveal the internationalizing process in the selected grandes
écoles and universities. The final conclusion summarizes the main answers to the
research questions obtained from the empirical data analysis and points out some
interesting and potential research pistes.
The book is mainly derived from my doctoral thesis and based on an over five-year
research interest in French higher education and international student mobility. This
amazing journey could have never been achieved without the support and guidance
from my two extraordinary thesis supervisors, Dr. Régis Malet and Dr. Ruth Hayhoe.
I’ve been working with Dr. Régis Malet since my Master’s studies and during these
years, I’ve benefited enormously from his guidance both in my academic develop-
ment and career building. He showed me the French academic world and taught me
how to conduct research and become a qualified researcher. His insightful criticisms
and thought-provoking ideas have pushed me further in seeking better understanding
and more possibilities. I would like to give him my true gratitude. Along this jour-
ney, the presence of my cosupervisor, Dr. Ruth Hayhoe has made it more exciting
and she is more than a mentor for my research. Her encouragement has comforted
me a lot at some difficult moments during the last several years and her inspirational
advice has enlightened my path in pursuit of knowledge. I feel very honored to have
shared this experience with both of my supervisors. I would also like to give many
Preface ix
thanks to all the participants in the four institutions who generously shared their time
and perspectives. I couldn’t have completed this work without their help. I would also
like to thank all my friends, in particular, Dr. Marie-Christine Deyrich for her kindness
and advice for my thesis, and Olivier Bégin-Caouette and Leila Noui for their s upport
and encouragement. Finally, I would like to thank my family. My parents trust me
with every decision I’ve made and have been always supportive. My dear boyfriend,
Han YueKang joined me in this journey several years ago and his confidence in my
competences propels me to keep fighting.
Xiamen, China Cui Bian
September 2015
