To boost their research productivities, Chinese universities are putting great pressure on their research-active staff to publish in internationally indexed journals. However, the emerging publish-or-perish culture in China has seen little empirical investigation thus far. In the research reported in this article, semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven young researchers in science and engineering disciplines at a research-centered university in central China. The study showed that these young scholars faced great pressure to publish papers in internationally indexed journals. Consequently, the participants were reluctant to spend time on other academic activities, including teaching training. They also reported considerable work time devoted to writing, which resulted in fatigue and negatively affected family relations. The participants admitted that they had to rush to publish, and therefore were less likely to produce papers of better quality or those with novel discoveries. The research contributes to our reflection upon Chinese universities’ increasing use of the number of international publications as a major assessment and incentive measurement of their faculties’ academic performance.

The number of international students in China is increasing rapidly, but their experiences in China remain largely unknown. This article reports an intensive longitudinal multiple case study that explores eight American students’ intercultural experiences and the impacts of such experiences on individual identity during their study in a Chinese university in 2010. Data come from monthly interviews and diaries that the students kept. Findings support Kim’s depiction of the processes by which intercultural identity emerges, notably the stress–adaptation–growth cycle and the concurrent processes of acculturation and deculturation. These findings reveal the journey of participants from cultural naivety to an emergent intercultural awareness and cultural critical capacity. Despite considerable ignorance and misunderstanding about China as an exotic “other” at the beginning of the program, all participants underwent some degree of cultural identity shift toward the more “open-ended . . . self–other orientation” of Kim’s “intercultural identity.”

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a substantial transition of Chinese international education to online learning. This article discusses the impact of online learning from international students’ perspectives. Data were collected from exploratory interviews with a small group of international students at a research university and a nationwide survey involving 1,010 international students at 41 universities in China. A synthesis of the two studies’ findings pointed to low levels of online learning satisfaction, particularly among international students from Africa, those in undergraduate programs, those in life sciences and medical disciplines, and those studying at research-centered universities. Moreover, both studies revealed low emotional engagement significantly predicted international students’ online learning dissatisfaction. To enhance international students’ satisfaction, it is suggested that universities and teachers prioritize the building of student-centered online learning environments supporting international students’ emotional involvement and helping them feel a greater sense of belonging in online intercultural learning.

The outbreak of COVID-19 has forced Chinese international education to move online. An emerging number of studies have been published on online teaching and learning during the pandemic, few of which, however, focus on international students in China. This study examined the predictive effects of an online learning environment and student engagement on international students’ learning of Chinese as a foreign language (CFL). Self-reported data were collected in an online questionnaire survey involving 447 international CFL students at eight universities located in different geographical regions in China. Descriptive statistics revealed the participants’ favorable perceptions of an online learning environment, student engagement and Chinese learning achievement. The results of multiple linear regression revealed that three online learning environment factors, i.e., course accessibility, student interaction, course organization, and student engagement exerted significant positive effects on Chinese learning achievement. The implications of the study are discussed for the sustainable enhancement of the online learning environment to improve international students’ online language learning.

With the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese teaching for international students in Chinese universities has largely moved online. Despite the comprehensive literature regarding the influences of environmental factors on domestic students’ learning in traditional learning environment, few studies have addressed the influences of online learning environment (OLE) on international students’ Chinese learning experiences. We focus on international students in intensive Chinese courses at a Chinese university, and explores the influences of OLE on these students’ intrinsic motivation (IM) towards and engagement in Chinese learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected from an online questionnaire survey and follow-up interviews. The results revealed that the participants had positive perceptions of the online Chinese learning environment, and that the participants had high levels of IM towards and engagement in their Chinese learning. The results showed the positive impact of the participants’ perceived OLE on their IM and engagement in Chinese learning.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic compelled Chinese international education to swiftly move online. Conducted in late 2021, this survey study collected self-reported data on online learning environments, student engagement, Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) learning achievement, and student satisfaction among 440 international students in Chinese higher education institutions. Based on the configuration perspective, fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was used to explore the multiple concurrent paths of the online learning environment (the accessibility of online learning resources, student interaction, teacher support, course organization), student engagement, and learning achievement affecting international students’ online CFL learning satisfaction. The results indicate that satisfactory teacher support combined with student engagement was an important path leading to international students’ satisfaction with online CFL learning. Meanwhile, the inadequate accessibility of online learning resources combined with the absence of learning achievement was likely to trigger international students’ dissatisfaction with online CFL learning.