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Old Dominion University Old Dominion University
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Educational Foundations & Leadership Faculty
Publications Educational Foundations & Leadership
2021
Ambitious and Anxious: How Chinese College Students Succeed Ambitious and Anxious: How Chinese College Students Succeed
and Struggle in American Higher Education and Struggle in American Higher Education
Minghui Hou
Old Dominion University
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Original Publication Citation Original Publication Citation
Hou, M. H. (2021). Ambitious and anxious: How Chinese college students succeed and struggle in
American higher education.
Journal of International Students
, 11(3), 757-760. https://doi.org/10.32674/
jis.v11i3.3743
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757
Book Review
© Journal of International Students
Volume 11, Issue 3 (2021), pp. 757-760
ISSN: 2162-3104 (Print), 2166-3750 (Online)
doi: 10.32674/jis.v11i3.3743
ojed.org/jis
Ambitious and Anxious: How Chinese College
Students Succeed and Struggle in American
Higher Education
Ma, Y., 2020, Columbia University Press
Reviewed by Minghui Hou, Old Dominion University, USA
In this new publication, Syracuse University
Associate Professor Yingyi Ma employs a
mixed-method research design to examine
and analyze the educational motivations,
experiences, and trajectories of a new wave
of Chinese undergraduate students from
diverse family backgrounds with an
emphasis on “the duality of ambition and
anxiety” (p. 7). This book challenges the
stereotyped expectations of Americans in
regard to Chinese students (for instance, that
all are from well-off families and have poor
English skills). Ma argues that it is pivotal
to consider the educational, social, and
cultural backgrounds of Chinese
internationals in their processes of self-
formation in order to have a well-rounded
and diverse understanding of Chinese
undergraduate students.
The first two chapters present a broad and varied picture of undergraduates
being both ambitious and anxious. These Chinese learners are ambitious about
pursuing higher education at prestigious American institutions, gaining a global
outlook, selecting the right major for achieving their goals, combining the merits
of American and Chinese education, and their eventual contributions to China or
the United States. Meanwhile, they are anxious about the complicated and
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Journal of International Students
758
unknown American institutions’ admission processes, tensions within different
fields, new expectations in American classrooms, as well as both competition in
China and the anti-immigrant environment in America. Ma also identifies the
following reasons for Chinese undergraduates studying abroad as education
gospel: good quality of education, future career development, cosmopolitan
capital, and disappointment with Chinese Gaokao and education systems.
In Chapter 3 Ma explores four pathways of Chinese students studying in the
United States:
1. From regular classes in Chinese public schools to American colleges
2. From international classes in Chinese public schools to American
colleges
3. From Chinese private schools to American colleges
4. From high schools in America, usually private, to American colleges
(Ma, 2020, p. 54)
These four pathways are economically stratified (from least to most cost) with
80% of study participants pursuing the first two pathways. This chapter focuses
on the influences of economic status and parental education on international
educational trajectories, for example the use of agents in college applications as
well as the DIY (do it yourself) avenue. The former plays an important role given
agents’ institutional connections and their potential role as mentors. However,
there is also dissatisfaction with agents due to lack of communication and
transparency.
In Chapter 4, Ma examines Chinese students’ insights on Chinese and
American education: creativity, critical thinking, ability- and effort-based
learning mindsets, attitudes toward math, the disconnection between precollege
and college experiences, and academic integrity. She argues that Chinese
education focuses on standardized curriculum, conformity, and rote learning,
whereas American education focuses on critical thinking and creativity, which she
frames as including “multiplistic thinking,” “truth seeking and challenging
authority,” and “emphasizing process over outcome” (p. 84). Ma argues that
Chinese students tend to put more effort into studying than their American peers,
and further that they are influenced by Confucianism to be obedient to professors.
This reflects Stevenson and Stiger’s belief that Chinese individuals emphasize
effort as driving their learning, whereas American students focus more on innate
ability. In Chapter 6, this is connected to the selection of majors, with Ma arguing
that collectivism and pragmatism informed by the views of parents and teachers
may support Chinese students’ selection of STEM fields.
Chapters 5 and 7 focus on the issues Chinese students have encountered in
sociocultural and academic interactions. Ma explores two primary issues: Chinese
students’ dissatisfaction with their lives (internal) and unmet desired benefits for
international and domestic students for institutions (external). Ma explores the
rationales for the issues: students’ exclusion from American peer groups due to
neo-racism and “the voluntary withdrawal” into Chinese groups due to
disappointment with the American economy and individualistic culture (p. 111).
Ma’s research resonates with Lee and Rice’s (2007) study on neo-racist
Journal of International Students
759
stereotypes about Asians, in which Chinese students were considered loud and
perceived as only making friends with other Chinese students. I would argue that
the neo-racist stereotypes have become worse during the pandemic under the
Trump administration. As for academic interactions, such as a lack of speaking
up in the classroom, Ma identifies the English language barrier as the primary
rationale, premigration characteristics and institutional types as micro-contextual
rationales, and cultural differences as well as test-oriented educational system as
macrocontextual rationales. These two chapters are one of the few contributions
in the relevant literature to bring a holistic understanding of Chinese students’
sociocultural and academic experiences in a neo-racist context.
In Chapter 8 three themes related to Chinese students’ reflections on their
courses of study are explored: global citizenship, attitudes toward China and the
United States, and personal transformation. One key assertion is that the
development of global citizenship strengthens students’ interest and affinity with
China, whereas it leads to criticisms of American government and institutions.
Students become more autonomous, independent, proactive, and reflective, which
sometimes causes tensions and conflicts with their parents. Ma’s findings support
the notion that American higher education is an important source of soft power
due to the transmission of American cultures and values to Chinese students.
Chapter 9 focuses on decision-making about the future among Chinese
international students. Around 60% of the participants in Ma’s study plan to return
to China, but most intend to return within 1–3 years after graduation. Four
nuanced patterns for future decisions are “returning to China, staying in the United
States, traversing transnational places, and wavering hearts and changing plans”
(p. 214). Ma explores the following rationales for returning to China: the Trump
administration, the lure of family, American graduate school as a conduit, and
better opportunities in China. For students wanting to stay in the United States,
they prefer the American environment due to concerns about factors such as
pollution and corruption in China.
Notable among the book’s contributions is the exploration of different
purposes and experiences of both privileged and less privileged students studying
in the United States. While the former aim to maintain their socioeconomic status,
less privileged students tend to achieve social mobility. For both groups of
students, agents are important in the application process not only because of
connections with American institutions but also given American holistic
admissions, which tend to lead students to be enrolled in higher-ranked
universities due to professional guidance and service. In addition, these groups of
students have built a sense of agency in the process of self-formation while
studying in the United States.
To conclude, this book provides significant contributions to the literature on
students’ selection of course of study, social integration, and transnational
migration, as well as on policy discourse, including but not limited to college
admissions, student affairs, faculty support, and career services. Ma draws on
theoretical and empirical literature to highlight the new educational gospel for the
new wave of Chinese international undergraduates in the context of rapid social,
cultural, and economic development in China and uncertain geopolitical context
Journal of International Students
760
in the United States. Future research should examine student decision-making
processes regarding study abroad given China-U.S. geopolitical tensions and
experiences particularly during the pandemic, and what policies or supports
should be provided in a particular institutional, regional, or global context.
REFERENCES
Lee, J. J., & Rice, C. (2007). Welcome to America? International student
perceptions of discrimination. Higher Education, 53(3), 381–409. https://
doi.org/10.1007/s10734-005-4508-3
Ma, Y. (2020). Ambitious and anxious: How Chinese college students succeed
and struggle in American higher education. Columbia University Press.
MINGHUI HOU is a PhD candidate in the higher education program at Old
Dominion University. Her research interests are international education equity,
curriculum internationalization, neo-racism, and geopolitical tensions. E-mail:
mhou009@odu.edu.
