In the News: Yingyi Ma

"I worry that this potentially undermines Chinese students’ learning opportunities," says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology, about U.S. university faculty members suggesting that Chinese students wait to enroll in certain courses until they can return to campus for in-person instruction.

Chinese students in the U.S. are now "politicised and marginalised at an unprecedented level," as Washington is sending "very unfriendly signals," says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology.

"A large majority of Chinese students [are] coming to study in the U.S. not for political reasons," says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology. "What they really want is quality education opportunities, so that they can improve their career prospects, or they can broaden their horizons and really enjoy being in the process of cultivating their global citizenship."

Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology, assesses that Trump's executive order suspending the entry of foreign workers seeking H1-B visas "seriously undermines American leadership in fields such as technology and medicine where skilled immigrants serve as the backbone."

Those of an older generation, whether in China or the U.S., generally prefer to circumvent discussion of politics and socioeconomic issues, says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology. "They have memories of the Cultural Revolution and they understand how divisive and how difficult it was and how much destruction it caused," she says.

Now, "Chinese international students in the U.S. overwhelmingly consider China a safer place, with [their] government more competently handling the crisis than the American government," says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology. "That is why so many Chinese students have returned home, despite the high risk of international travel and the enormous difficulty in buying airplane tickets."

"American higher education should really provide sustained support to Chinese international students" due to the anxieties they face during the COVID-19 scare, says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology and director of Asian/American Studies.

Yingyi Ma, professor of sociology, suggests that Chinese students are motivated to study abroad because of disappointment with the Chinese education system, which they assert “stifles creativity” and “entails hellish hours of studying.”

According to Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology, and her co-authors, U.S. institutions need to invest more in direct recruiting in China, do more to integrate Chinese students, and provide diverse networking opportunities for them.

"Many students are scared away already by the new policies even before going through the visa hurdles," says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology.

The highly competitive Public Intellectual Program Fellowship provides support for scholars who specialize in China and directly engage with public and policy communities. It has been awarded to Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology and director of Syracuse University’s Asian/Asian American Studies program.

"Their (Chinese) classroom participation patterns right now really have pushed a lot of professors to think about how they can adjust the way they teach," says Yingyi Ma, associate professor of sociology and O'Hanley Faculty Scholar.