The next China Studies Seminar will take place on May 20, 2026, and will focus on the theme “Between Aspiration and Rejection: Class, Gender, and Alternative Futures Among Chinese International Students,” in an online format.
LINK TEAMS
https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/358231444882315?p=RmurgRKciKqBaPCIyb
ABSTRACT
This webinar draws on my previous and ongoing research on the gendered mobility of Chinese female international students. The study is based on qualitative data collected through in-depth interviews and focus groups with over 60 Chinese female students from16 UK universities. Participants are primarily from middle-class backgrounds and are either currently studying in the UK or have completed their studies since 2021 and returned to China. In addition, the research incorporates online ethnographic data, including posts and discussions from Xiaohongshu (RedNote), to capture broader narratives and peer discourse. The webinar aims to explore how the intersection of social position, class background, overseas education, and early-life socialisation, alongside exposure to feminist ideas, shapes and reshapes these women’s life aspirations and trajectories. In particular, it examines how they negotiate dominant “life scripts” around dating and marriage, and how they imagine and pursue alternative lifestyles and life paths.