SHANGHAI (Reuters) - American students aregetting cold feet about studying Chinese in China, with many study abroadprograms in the country seeing a substantial drop in enrolment over the lastfew years.
上海（路透社）——美国学生越来越害怕在中国学习中文，最近几年去中国留学的海外留学项目收到的学生越来越少。

At the University of California EducationAbroad Program (UCEAP), student enrolment in programs in China isexpected to be less than half the level it was only four years ago.Washington-based CET, another leading study abroad group, says interest in Chinahas been falling since 2013.
在加州大学的海外教育项目中，去中国留学的学生将不到4年前的一半。位于华盛顿的另外一个海外留学机构CET称自2013年以来对中国的兴趣变得越来越小。
The apparent waning of interest worriessome Chinawatchers. Given the importance of the U.S.-China relationship, having a groupof Americans across different industries who speak Chinese and understand theculture is "a matter of national interest", says Robert Daly,director of the Kissinger Institute on Chinaand the United States at theWilson Centerin Washington.
这种明显的兴趣下降让一些中国通们感到担忧。介于中美关系的重要性，如果有一支来自各个领域的美国人知道讲中文并且了解中国文化，这是非常重要的，"事关国家利益"，威尔逊国际学者中心的基辛格中美研究院的主任Robert Daly说。
"We can't respond coherently,effectively and fully to Chinaunless we understand Chinaon its own terms," he said.
"如果我们不能以中国的方式了解中国，那么我们就无法对中国做出连贯的，有效的和完全的反应，"他说。
The Instituteof International Education says thenumber of U.S. studentsstudying in Chinafell 3.2 percent in 2012-13 to 14,413, even as overall study abroad numbersrose modestly.
国际教育协会说2012-2013年在中国的美国留学生下降了3.2%到14413人，尽管总体的海外留学人数有略微上升。
American students' apparent loss ofinterest contrasts with Chinese students' clamor for a U.S. education.The number of Chinese studying in the United States jumped 16.5 percentin 2013-14 to more than 274,000.
美国学生对中国明显失去兴趣，而中国学生则很喜欢来美国留学，形成了鲜明的对比。2013-2014年在美国的中国留学生上升了16.5%到274000人。
For U.S. students, China's notorious pollution is a concern. Job opportunities are another. As multinationals in China hire mostly local Chinese, a growing percentage of whom have studied abroad, they have less need for foreigners who speak Chinese.
对于美国学生来说，中国的污染是个问题，而就业机会是另一个问题。在中国的跨国公司主要雇佣的是中国人，越来越多的中国人都有过海外留学经历，所以跨国公司对会讲中文的外国人的需求越来越小。