International Students' Learning Experience and Learning Outcomes in China through Summer Programs

Higher education institutions are facing unprecedented opportunities and challenges due to the rapid development of global contexts. With the momentum of higher education internationalization, leading universities in China began to launch international summer programs. These summer programs offer multiple benefits to university stakeholders, especially students. This chapter reviews the context and characteristics for international programs in leading Chinese universities. The significant role these programs play in designing an innovative learning platform were argued by reviewing and analyzing the trends among sample programs on aspects of curriculum design and implementation. The authors provide an in-depth understanding of students' learning outcomes during these programs by conducting a qualitative study utilizing sample summer programs. Last but not least, the opportunities and challenges concerning the organization and implementation of programs were analyzed and possible recommendations were proposed for future study abroad improvements.