Chinese Students Struggle to Get Seats for English-Language Exam, Suggesting Rise in Interest in Studying Abroad

Students walk outside a school after finishing the National College Entrance Examination, known as "gaokao", outside a school in Wuhan in central China's Hubei Province on July 8, 2020. STR/AFP via Getty Images

Chinese students recently rushed to snap up spots to take an English-language test, suggesting a heightened interest in studying in the United States and other English-speaking countries. This comes despite the deteriorating relationship between Beijing and Washington.

The Educational Testing Service (ETS), the U.S. organization that administers the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), on Oct. 14 opened registration for 2021 TOEFL tests in China. Within five minutes of opening, all test spots in Beijing and Shanghai for the first eight months of 2021 had booked out.