If you’re a Chinese student looking for funding to help you study abroad, read on to discover a range of international scholarships. You may also be interested in attending an upcoming QS World Grad School Tour event in Beijing, Chengdu, Wuhan or Shanghai, where you can meet universities from around the world and apply for exclusive scholarships.

Scholarships for Chinese students to study in the US

• Ohio State University China Excellence Scholarship – Students who have obtained their bachelor’s degree in law from an institution in China will be automatically considered for this merit-based scholarship, which offers two 50% tuition waivers per year. The scholarship seeks to support students who show promise through a record of community service, academic or professional achievement, leadership and/or overcoming hardship.
• Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology – Both the Michael Y.F. Chau scholarship and the Chiang Kai-Shek scholarship aim to help students of the school who are from the People’s Republic of China. No separate application is required; eligible students are automatically considered. The scholarship is for one year only and is not renewable.
• Calvin College, Wilhemina Kalsbeek Memorial Scholarship – Four US$2,500 awards are available to students from mainland China or another Asian country (with preference given to those from mainland China) who demonstrate financial need.
• S.L. Fong Memorial Scholarship – US$500 is available to a pre-med full-time student of Chinese descent who is transferring to UC Berkeley in the fall and can demonstrate financial need.
• Indiana University School of Law, Ronald W. Polston Scholarship – Awarded to one or more students enrolled in various selected law programs, with preference given to Chinese students.
• San Joaquin Delta College, Ock Sam Huey Memorial Scholarship – Available for a full-time sophomore student of Chinese descent who is transferring to a four-year institution in the fall. To apply, you must demonstrate community service, have two letters of recommendation, a short biography and a minimum 3.2 GPA.

Scholarships for Chinese students to study in Europe

To study in the UK:

• Sheffield University – Two China Merit Undergraduate Scholarships are available, each worth 50% of the annual tuition fees. The scholarship will be awarded on the basis of academic merit and a supporting statement.
• Newcastle University – An award of UK£2,600 is available to cover the first year of tuition fees for high-achieving Chinese students applying for entry to any master’s degree programs at Newcastle University.
• University of Kent Lo Family Scholarship Fund – A UK£5,000 scholarship is available to full-time postgraduate students from Hong Kong or China who are enrolling on a postgraduate taught program at Kent Business School.
• University of Bradford – 10 full tuition fee scholarships and 25 half-fee scholarships available for both undergraduate and postgraduate full-time courses for students who come from China, Taiwan or Hong Kong. Excludes MBAs and distance learning.
• LSE Woo Family Scholarship – One UK£20,000 scholarship is available for an applicant of Chinese nationality, resident in China and studying a master’s program in one of the following departments: Geography and Environment, Government, International Relations and Sociology.
• Great Britain China Center Chinese Student Awards – Awards of up to UK£3,000 are available for Chinese citizens (including those from Hong Kong) studying for a PhD in any subject at a UK university.
• University of Warwick – Up to six joint scholarships are available to study a PhD at the university.
• The China Oxford Scholarship Fund – Awards up to 20 scholarships annually to students from the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong and Macau who have been granted a place for postgraduate studies at the University of Oxford.

To study in the Netherlands:

• Leiden University – The CSC Scholarship is a joint scholarship program for Chinese PhD students, which offers exemption from fees, personal allowance and international airfare.
• Wittenborg University OTS Scholarship China – Scholarships are available which offer students from China the chance to study on one of the university’s Bachelor or Master of Science programs. Awards provide a tuition fee waiver for duration of the final year of a bachelor’s program, or the full fee of a master’s program.

To study in Sweden:

• Chalmers University of Technology Volvo Group Scholarships – Four scholarships are available to Chinese or Indian students, who will receive a 100% tuition fee waiver for master’s programs in selected fields of study.

To study in Australia:

• Deakin University Business School China Partner Institutions Bursary – 70 bursaries are available in 2016 for prospective Deakin Business School students from selected Chinese Partner Institutions, who may be eligible to receive a 10% discount for the length of their degree.
• University of Sydney China Scholarship Council Research Schemes – Applications are invited from candidates who are eligible to undertake PhD research at the University of Sydney. Scholarship holders will have their tuition fees paid and will also be granted living expenses and the costs of other expenses like flights and visas.
• Monash University – The China Scholarship Council (CSC) Doctoral Scholarship Program awards scholarships to tuition fees, living expenses and more.

To study in Thailand:

• Asian Institute of Technology – The China Scholarship Council will offer annually 10 scholarships covering, as prescribed by the Chinese Central Government, tuition fees, living expenses and more.

If you’re a Chinese student considering studying abroad, join an upcoming QS World Grad School Tour event in Beijing, Chengdu, Wuhan or Shanghai – a chance to meet universities from around the world and apply for exclusive funding opportunities.

The new and expanded edition of the QS University Rankings: Emerging Europe and Central Asia is released today – highlighting the top 150 universities in this dynamic world region.

Following last year’s pilot edition, the ranking has now been extended to feature an additional 50 universities, with the results being debated at a launch event in Istanbul today.

The release sees Russia’s Lomonosov Moscow State University retain the top spot, followed by fellow Russian institution Novosibirsk State University and the Czech Republic’s Charles University. Each of these countries features twice more in the top 10, alongside one Estonian and two Polish entries.

Overall, Russian universities continue to dominate, accounting for almost a quarter of the top 100 universities, and 48 of the top 150. Turkey has 16 representatives, Kazakhstan 14, Poland 12, the Czech Republic 10 and Ukraine 9. A total of 20 countries are featured at least once, and more than 500 universities were considered for inclusion.

First developed last year, the QS University Rankings: Emerging Europe and Central Asia aims to highlight educational excellence across the EECA region. Universities are assessed on nine key performance indicators: academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, staff with a PhD, papers per faculty member, citations per paper, international faculty members, international students, and web impact.

The results are published in an interactive table, which can be sorted by country and by performance indicator, making it easy to compare individual universities while also providing insights into the relative strengths and weaknesses of each nation’s higher education offering.

As the results and their implications are discussed at today’s launch event, you can join the conversation via Twitter with #QSWUR. For additional insights and commentary, a supplementary report is available to read online.

First published in 2014’s pilot edition, the QS University Rankings: Emerging Europe & Central Asia (EECA) has been extended in 2015 to feature the top 150 universities in the region. Aiming to celebrate and track the performance of higher education institutions in the EECA countries, the ranking uses a methodology adapted from the overall QS World University Rankings®, and similar to those used for QS’s other regional rankings.

A total of nine factors are assessed, each of which contributes a certain proportion towards institutions’ overall scores. The results table can be sorted to compare universities on each of these nine indicators.

Academic reputation (30%)

As is the case for all of QS’s university rankings, global reputation is assessed through two major international surveys. The first of these is the annual QS Global Academic Survey, which asks academics worldwide to identify the institutions they perceive to be conducting the best work in the own field. In 2015, more than 72,000 responses were considered.

Employer reputation (20%)

Alongside the academic survey, the QS Global Employer Survey asks graduate employers across the planet to name the institutions they believe to be producing the best graduates in their sector. For the 2015 rankings, more than 44,000 employer responses fed into the results.

Faculty/student ratio (15%)

In lieu of a reliable or practical method by which to assess and compare teaching quality internationally, faculty/student ratio is considered. This is based on the number of students enrolled per full-time academic staff member, aiming to give an indication of each institution’s commitment to providing high standards of academic support.

Papers per faculty (10%)

Calculated using data from Elsevier’s Scopus – the world’s largest abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed academic literature – this indicator reflects research productivity, based on papers published per academic faculty member.

Web impact (10%)

Based on the Webometrics ranking, this indicator reflects the extent of each institution’s online presence, one aspect of their commitment to international engagement and communication.

Staff with a PhD (5%)

A priority and growing strength for many leading universities in the EECA region is the recruitment of academic staff members qualified to PhD level or the equivalent. Progress in this area is assessed by calculating the proportion of faculty members at this level.

Citations per paper (5%)

Again based on data from the Scopus database, this indicator aims to assess research impact, based on the frequency with which an institution’s published papers are cited by other researchers around the world.

International faculty (2.5%) and international students (2.5%)

Finally, the last two indicators are based on the proportion of faculty members and students who are international. This provides an indication of the diversity of the institution’s community and learning environment, as well as reflecting success in attracting academics and students across national borders.

The 2015 edition of the QS University Rankings: EECA will be launched on 21 October. To be the first to get the results, follow us on Twitter and join the conversation with #QSWUR.

This article is sponsored by Cambridge English.

Universities and colleges are looking for more than excellent academic scores. At top universities, most applicants will have high test scores, so admissions decisions are often based on other criteria.

One of the most important factors is your communication skills. Some students think that academic subject knowledge is everything. But actually, knowledge and communication are completely connected. You need to come up with big ideas and be able to explain them clearly too.

Most universities require students to prove their English language ability by taking an approved test. By taking a focused academic English exam you will develop the right kind of skills to do well in your personal statement, admissions tests and interview.

1) Create the right impression in your personal statement 

Students who take academic English language exams, such as Cambridge English: Advanced, learn how to use persuasive language to make compelling written arguments. These skills are essential when creating a stand-out personal statement.

The personal statement is a “mini-essay”, which uses full sentences and paragraphs rather than bullet points. The most effective statements are:

• Well-structured: Make sure the main points are arranged in a logical order and your argument flows well.
• Well-evidenced: Include evidence of your achievements to support the points you make.
• Error-free: Make sure there are no mistakes in spelling, punctuation, grammar or sentence construction.
• Compelling: Use a positive, confident and mature tone, and don’t be afraid to let your personality and enthusiasm for your subject come through. The very best statements are the ones that move the reader.

2) Learn the right skills to do well in admissions tests 

Many universities and colleges require applicants to take admissions tests. In the UK, over half of all universities have admissions tests in at least one subject. At the University of Oxford, for example, over 90% of applicants take an admissions test.[1] In the US, over 1.8 million students take the ACT exam and over 1.6 million students take the SAT college entrance exam.[2]

Admissions tests are designed to test students’ critical reading and essay writing skills. By taking an academic English language exam you will develop the skills you need for admissions tests, such as:

• Scanning texts for relevant information  
• Understanding the main topics and ideas in complex texts
• Reading quickly enough to cope with the demands of an academic test
• Writing essays with a good organizational structure
• Selecting the most relevant ideas and representing them clearly and briefly
• Presenting arguments and supporting conclusions.[3]

3) Impress the interviewer 

Students who take academic English language exams also learn how to discuss abstract concepts and keep up a conversation with a good degree of fluency. These skills are essential at the interview stage.

The interview is not a test of English, but it cannot be taken with the help of an interpreter and therefore good communication skills are needed. You can impress the interviewer by:

• Listening carefully: Think about why a question is being asked and what the interviewer wants to know.
• Being confident: If you do not understand something, don’t be afraid to ask the interviewer to explain the question or speak more slowly.
• Showing clarity of thought: Give your opinions and argue your point logically.
• Expressing yourself clearly: Avoid slang, use professional language, be positive and enthusiastic.

This article is sponsored by the University of South Wales.

Wales is part of the United Kingdom (UK) and the island of Great Britain, and was voted one of the top countries in the world to visit by Rough Guide in 2014. It is bordered by England to the south and east, with the Irish Sea to the north and west. With a population of around 3 million, Wales shares a legal system with England and uses British pound sterling as its currency.

Welsh universities offer a diverse range of locations and learning experiences, from vibrant cities through to breathtaking mountains, coastal locations and somewhere in between. Read on for seven of the best reasons to choose a university in Wales…

1. High-quality education and research 

As a student of a university in Wales, you’ll have an excellent learning experience. As part of the world-renowned UK higher education system, Welsh universities offer quality higher education qualifications that are respected by employers and academics worldwide.

Quality research underpins an innovative learning and teaching environment, and more than three quarters of research conducted at universities in Wales is judged to be ‘world leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’ (REF 2014).

2. A strong focus on graduate employability

Welsh universities also have long established relationships with some of the world’s leading companies. The University of South Wales, for example, works with a diverse range of companies, from NASA and Hewlett-Packard to Rolls Royce and British Airways. As a result of close industry links, 92% of graduates from Welsh universities found employment within six months of leaving university.

3. An affordable cost of living

Wales enjoys some of the lowest living costs in Britain. Compared to many areas of the UK, Wales often has lower costs on items such as accommodation, travel, food, entertainment and shopping, while enjoying the same high-quality goods and services as the rest of the UK.

4. Stunning surroundings and historic sites 

Awe-inspiring natural and historic landscapes also make the Welsh student experience very special. With over 600 castles – there are more here per square mile than anywhere else in the world – and six UNESCO World Heritage Sites, students are always within striking distance of our rich and varied cultural heritage.

5. An international outlook and community

Welsh universities are proud of their international outlook and the variety of nationalities that can be found on campuses across the country, including academic staff from across the globe. As an international student, you will be a valued member of our university community and you will find award-winning outstanding support. The University of South Wales, for example, won the Times Higher Education Outstanding Support for Students Award in 2012.

6. Excellent support services for international students 

Universities in Wales work hard to ensure that international students have the best possible learning experiences through providing their own bespoke support packages. Services available include pre-departure briefings for students in their home country, free airport welcome services, English language and study skills support and visits to places of interest across the UK.

If you want information, advice or guidance on any emotional, financial or medical issue, there is a network of people ready to help. At the University of South Wales, the specialist Immigration and International Student Advice team is dedicated to the welfare of international and EU students. They will make sure you have the help and support you need before you arrive and during your studies.

The team helps students with any non-academic, welfare-related issues such as visa extensions, employment regulations, orientation and adapting to a new culture. They also organize social activities throughout the year, promote volunteering opportunities, and recruit Global Assistants to help with the social and pastoral care of the university’s international and EU students.

7. A wide range of extracurricular activities 

In addition to the fantastic support services, some of the University of South Wales’ current sports teams and societies include the international student society (including country-specific societies), debating society, cricket club, football (soccer) teams, rugby teams and many more.

Vietnamese student Duong Thuy Nguyen, studying the BA (Hons) Business Studies and MBA at the University of South Wales, says: “My advice to international students is to enjoy your time at the university while studying, participate in events that the Students’ Union or the International Student Society organizes for you and engage with new people. You will be surprised by how many fantastic friends you can meet from around the globe!”

Welsh universities offer a friendly and academically challenging environment with an excellent reputation for research and teaching quality, state-of-the-art study facilities and supportive staff. For more information about studying in Wales, visit: www.studyinwales.ac.uk.

How many of these facts about the world’s top universities did you already know? Got any more to share with us? Please do – we’d love to hear from you in the comments below.

To explore the world’s top universities this year in more depth, visit the latest edition of the QS World University Rankings®. The interactive ranking table can be sorted to compare more than 800 of the world’s top universities on six key performance indicators – and for more details, simply click on an institution name to access additional insights and information.

Video by Rachael Lewis for TopUniversities.com.