Many Chinese students like studying commerce and economics when pursuing a foreign degree. According to the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange, one third of Chinese students studying abroad in 2013 were enrolled in business schools. On many campuses, especially in English-speaking countries, the majority of the international student community is Chinese. However, the issue of conformity among Chinese overseas students does not stop at choosing majors. Chinese students’ different lifestyles and eating habits also drive them to form their own communities; their different attitude toward studying abroad influences their choice of universities; and China’s rising economic power means many of them choose to pursue business degrees.
很多中国学生在留学时往往倾向于选择商贸专业。据中国留学服务中心发布的数据显示，2013年有三分之一的中国留学生选择国外商学院。在很多大学，尤其是那些说英语的国家的大学，中国学生成为留学生的主力军。然而，中国留学生“扎堆儿”现象不仅体现在专业选择上。不同的生活方式和饮食习惯使他们形成了自己的群体；而他们不同的留学观还会影响他们择校。中国经济实力的崛起也成为许多留学生选择商科的原因。

21st Century interviewed students and experts in top overseas study destinations in the US to explore how conformity influences Chinese students behavior while abroad and shapes their study experience.
为探寻留学生“扎堆儿”现象对中国留学生行为以及求学经历的影响，《21世纪英文报》特别采访了多位来自美国名校的中国留学生和专家。
Time abroad not just about studying
海外留学不仅仅是求学那么简单
Lu Hong, 21, an economics major at the University of Southern California, is happy about pursuing his master’s degree 10,000 kilometers away from home.
21岁的陆鸿（音译）在美国南加州大学主修经济学，能够来到离家1万公里远的美国读研，他表示很开心。
He has made new friends in various societies organized by Chinese students, knows all the best Chinese restaurants in the local area, and can even download translated versions of the reading materials from an online sharing website.
他在中国学生创办的各色社团中结识新朋友，对当地最地道的中餐馆了如指掌，甚至可以从在线分享网站下载译文版的阅读材料。
“I feel very secure and very efficient in both my personal and study life,” said Lu.
陆鸿说：“无论是个人生活还是学业，我都觉得很有安全感、很高效。”
To an extent, he should feel at home. With one of the largest Chinese student bodies on campus, the University of Southern California has 3,771 students from China among its total population of 9,840 international students in 2013 (the figures for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Purdue University are even higher).
在某种程度上，他觉得就像在家一样。作为中国留学生人数最多的学校之一，2013年南加州大学共有9840名留学生，其中中国留学生人数达到3771名（伊利诺伊大学香槟分校和普渡大学的这一数字甚至更高）。
For many students, a Chinese-compatible student community is an important consideration when applying for study abroad programs, according to Chen Xia, a senior consultant at a Beijing-based study abroad agency.
来自北京某留学机构的资深顾问陈霞（音译）表示，是否具备对中国学生开放包容的社团组织成为许多学生申请留学时的一个重要考虑事项。
“For safety, lifestyle, and study reasons, both students and parents tend to choose universities with a large Chinese student population,” said Chen. “California has the US’ biggest Chinese population, which makes it attractive for Chinese students.”
“出于安全性、生活习惯以及学业方面的考虑，学生和家长都倾向于选择中国留学生较多的学校，”陈霞说。“在美国，加利福尼亚是华人人口数量最多的地区，因此对中国学生更具吸引力。”
It’s not that an environment that is less likely to cause culture shock is a bad thing.
一个文化冲突可能性较弱的环境并非坏事。
But Dayle Smith, former associate dean of the business school at the University of San Francisco, said that Chinese students should get out of their comfort zone to get more exposure to local and international culture in their social and study life.
然而，原旧金山大学商学院副院长黛尔?史密斯表示，中国留学生应该走出自己的舒适圈，在求学和社交方面进一步融入到本土和国际文化之中。
“While the presence of Chinese students on campus is a valuable asset for the university, some of them seem not to be ready in terms of their survival, social, and academic English skills,” said Smith.
史密斯还说：“对大学而言，中国留学生的确带来了一笔宝贵财富，但他们中的一些人似乎在生活、社交及专业英语技能方面并没有做好准备。”
According to Smith, the value of studying abroad is not limited to following courses. It’s a comprehensive experience of adapting to a new environment in order to expand horizons and acquire a new set of skills.
史密斯表示，留学的价值不仅仅是学习，而是一次适应新环境的全方位体验，并在这个过程中开拓视野、学习新技能。
Following a different path
留学切勿随波逐流
Different from her compatriot Lu, Wang Linna, 22, chose to apply to a liberal arts school in Nebraska, US.
和陆鸿不同，22岁的王琳娜（音译）申请的是美国内布拉斯加一所文科大学。
“I applied for a literature degree, which is a less common choice,” said Wang. “I think studying abroad is more about having an adventure than following courses. So I want to go somewhere special to avoid people who share my cultural background.”
“我申请了相当冷门的文科，”王琳娜说。“我认为出国留学不仅仅是埋头苦读而已，它更像是一场冒险。所以我要去一个特别的地方，远离那些和我拥有相同文化背景的人。”
According to Xinquan Overseas Education’s survey of 12,000 students applying for US institutions in 2013, Wang’s approach is gaining popularity with Chinese students.
据鑫泉留学调查显示，在2013年申请美国院校的1.2万名学生中，很多人都与王琳娜的想法不谋而合。
More and more of them are choosing less pragmatic majors, such as business, and going for such fields as arts, literature, or philosophy in less high-profile destinations.
越来越多的中国留学生放弃商科这样的高实用性专业，转投一些冷门院校的艺术、文学及哲学等专业。
“For arts and literature, there was a 6 percent and 9 percent spike, while applications for other majors all experienced a decline in 2013,” said the agency’s report, which was released recently.
该留学机构最新发布的数据显示：“2013年，在其他专业申请人数纷纷缩水的情况下，艺术和文学专业的申请人数分别上涨了6%和9%。”