Chinese culture attracts more US students

For Caleb Leonard, a second-year undergraduate student, it all started with a tiny checkbox on the Duke University application, asking if he wanted to apply to Duke's campus in China: Duke Kunshan University.

Having studied Chinese for 12 years in the US, he applied.

During the admissions interview, he learned about the opportunity to pursue two degrees — one from Duke University in the US and one from DKU in China. "It became clear that DKU and China were providing me an offer that I could not reject," Leonard said. His family, who had never been to Kunshan or anywhere in China before, booked plane tickets to tour the campus. They were impressed by the infrastructure, the safety of the cities, the cleanliness on and off campus, and the welcoming nature of the school's personnel and Chinese citizens.

Leonard also said misinformation about China in the US, and misconceptions about the US in China, have led some family members to disapprove of his decision. "Now, more than ever, it is important that we break down those incorrect stereotypes and show the world how much an international education truly has to offer," he said.

Quelch said, "Education is the most enduring diplomacy." He noted that what attracts American undergraduates to Duke Kunshan is not a simple copy of Duke in the US, but a unique educational value: a Duke-quality education in an international, interdisciplinary and globally oriented environment, including studying on campuses in both China and the US, earning two degrees, close faculty-student interaction, and the experience of living and growing in China.