Overseas ‘study’ tours emphasize shopping, sightseeing

(Ecns.cn) -- The Beijing Capital International Airport has seen increasing crowds of students taking overseas study tours in recent weeks, according to China Youth Daily.

Airfares for flights to English-speaking countries such as the U.S., U.K. and Australia are on the rise as many students get set to begin their seasonal vacations, statistics from the airport show.

Prices of one-way tickets to the U.S. have risen to 12,000 to 13,000 yuan. The higher cost is blamed on travel agencies and English training institutions that have made many plane reservations since early this year, says a Chinese ticketing company.

Booming study tours are another cause of the price surge. Driven by tidy profits, many organizations have entered the business mainly focused on international trips.

"The profit margin for overseas study tours is quite big. Take the U.S. for example: an agency, if they have cheap airfare deals, can make at least 5,000 yuan from each student," an experienced study tour organizer told China Youth Daily.

"Since London will hold the Olympic Games this year, many agencies have shifted their focus to America, which is a multicultural country with a great number of famous schools," the organizer added.

Reporters found on the website of a training school that prices for overseas study tours are not cheap: A trip less than 20 days long can cost around 30,000 yuan and up. (The school charges 43,800 yuan per person for a 14-day summer camp to Stanford University, for example.)

Industry watchers have calculated that such a trip costs no more than 30,000 yuan, meaning that the school earns at least 10,000 yuan per student.

"A round-trip ticket between America and China is around 10,000-15,000 yuan, and could be much cheaper (6,000-7,000 yuan) if the institution had made a discount deal with airlines. Daily expenses for each student in the U.S. are about 800-1,000 yuan on average," an expert explains.

However, reporters also discovered that such a large sum may not even be enough to guarantee the quality of a trip. That's because many travel agencies and training schools tend to emphasize tourism instead of study.

A 14-day "Study Tour to Ivy League Schools in the U.S." by one travel agency only offers students four days to visit schools. For most of the time, the young adults will be taken sightseeing.

The travel agencies are usually good organizers, but not educators, says Ms. Zhu, whose child is planning to study in Australia after graduating from senior high school.

Zhu says it is hard to choose an appropriate study tour package. "I'm worried that travel agencies cannot effectively guide students to experience foreign schools," she says, adding that training institutions are also worrisome, as they lack organizational skills.

"I fear for my kid very much. Accidents may occur if the institution is not able to take care of a tour group of dozens of children," she says.

A parent told Xinhua News Agency that his child had a tremendous time in Europe by spending all his money on toys. He complained that the tour guide had taken the kids to several shopping malls.

A travel expert says the study tours are in essence sightseeing trips. "If parents want their children to experience foreign schools, they'd better take the kids abroad themselves."

Sun Yunxiao, deputy director at the China Youth & Children Research Center, praises activities that are focused on educational and cultural exchanges. The programs should include homestays to help students engage with local life and culture, says Sun.

He also suggests that "young adults should learn about China first before going abroad to study foreign countries. Importance should be given to domestic study tours too."

Yet because of low profits, study tours in China are suffering from a dull market.

A survey by China Youth Daily shows that a study tour in Beijing only generates about 500 yuan per student for an agency in southern China. The gains are far less than overseas study tours, commented the newspaper.