At noon, Shi Huizi received a text message: “This is Yuantong Express. Please come to the school gate and pick up your parcel.” The 22-year-old translation and interpretation major at Beijing International Studies University rushed to the school gate, where hundreds of parcels lay waiting to be collected by their owners.
中午，石慧子（音译）收到一条短信：“我是圆通快递的。请到校门口领取你的包裹。”这位就读于北京第二外国语学院翻译专业的22岁女生冲到了校门口，那里有几百个包裹在等人来签收。
This scene is not uncommon on China’s campuses, as shopping online has become an important part of their lifestyle for many university students. But convenient as it is, online shopping among students is marked by impulse buying and other risks. Students should be cautious to avoid them.
由于网购已经成为许多大学生生活中不可分割的一部分，这一幕在中国大学校园中十分常见。尽管网购如此便利，但在大学生人群中，它却常常与冲动消费和其他风险挂钩。面对网购风险，大学生们应谨慎规避。
According to Taobao, during last year’s graduation season, 250,000 graduate students from 116 “211” project universities nationwide spent 846 million yuan on Taobao.
据淘宝网统计，去年毕业季期间，来自全国116所“211”工程院校的25万名毕业生在淘宝上的消费金额达到了8.46亿元。
Irrational buyers
冲动的买家
Beijing Haidian Consumers’ Association conducted a survey on the online purchasing behavior of students, which showed that nearly 54 percent of respondents had made irrational purchases.
北京市海淀区消费者协会进行的一项学生网购行为调查显示，近54%的受访者曾有过冲动购买行为。
Yang Yi is one of them. The 23-year-old business administration major at Beijing Wuzi University bought a limited edition Gundam model kit online for a small fortune, only to find that its appeal faded rapidly.
杨毅（音译）便是其中一员。他就读于北京物资学院工商管理系，现年23岁。杨毅曾花重金在网上买了一个限量版高达模型，结果却发现新鲜感转瞬即逝。
“I did like it when I bought it, but it doesn’t look so attractive to me anymore now. So I’ve decided to sell it to pay off my debts,” says Yang.
杨毅说：“刚买来时我喜欢得不得了，可现在它不那么吸引我了。我打算把它卖掉还债。”
Yang’s experience reflects the consumption patterns of many university students. In an attempt to be unique, many of them turn to online shops to buy “exotic” items not easily found in the domestic market.
杨毅的网购经历反映了很多大学生的消费模式。为了追求独一无二，很多大学生转站网店，来购买一些国内市场上稀缺的“舶来品”。
“Many of the goods me and my roommates buy online come from abroad. You can’t find them in China,” Shi says.
石慧子说：“我和室友们买了很多海外商品。这些是你在国内买不到。”
According to Lei Li, a psychology professor at Renmin University, the impulsive buying patterns found among students have psychological roots. When shopping online is a campus trend, it’s not only about convenience, but also about group identification.
中国人民大学心理学教授雷雳表示，大学生的冲动消费方式源自心理因素。网购之所以成为一种校园时尚，不仅仅源自于它的便利，也来源于一种群体认同感。
“If everyone is doing something and you’re not, you’re less likely to be accepted by others,” Lei says. The mentality of not wanting to be left out is fuelling impulsive buying.
雷雳说：“如果你没有随大流，那就会显得不太合群。”这种不愿受孤立的心理助长了大学生的冲动购买行为。
Lingering risks
长期风险
Yin Xiaolu, a clinical medicine major at Hubei University of Medicine, says online shopping is not always a satisfying experience.
就读于湖北医药学院临床医学专业的尹晓露（音译）认为，网购并非总是称心如意。
“Sometimes the clothes or shoes I receive don’t look the same as on the photos in the description. But I seldom return anything as I would need to pay for postage. All these clothes end up in my wardrobe and are never taken out again,” says the 22-year-old.
“有时我收到的衣服或鞋子，实物与图片中描述的不符。但我很少退货，因为还要自己支付邮费。这些衣服被打入冷宫，闲置在衣柜里，再也没有拿出来过。”22岁的尹晓露说。
As the Haidian survey indicates, Yin is in good company. Of 848 respondents from universities based in Beijing, 42 percent said they had received products that didn’t match the online description or photos. Even so, 72.5 percent of student buyers don’t return unsatisfactory goods due to the inconvenience it causes and long procedures.
对于海淀区进行的大学生网购调查，尹晓露深有同感。在来自于北京各大高校的848名受访者中，有42%的人表示曾收到的实物同网上图片描述的不符。即便如此，72.5%的学生消费者并未退回不满意的商品，因为退货很不方便，且程序繁杂。
Lei suggests that students who are obsessed with online shopping “pay attention to the consequences and develop a more mature way of consuming - namely, buying items within their budget and being aware of the risks of buying online.”
雷雳建议那些大学生网购一族们：“要注意网购的后果，培养更成熟的消费习惯——换句话就是，购物不要超支，要意识到网购有风险。”