Aspiring to become a world power in an increasingly globalised world, the Chinese government recognises the importance of restructuring its economic structure to sustain its economic structure to sustain future economic growth. The Chinese government has also tried to adopt appropriate measures to transform not only the economic structures but also the education systems to produce future workforce with adaptive skills catering for the changing economic and labour market needs. The major objectives of this article is to critically examine the major motivations of students choosing international learning programmes either on offer in the mainland or studying abroad, and their career developments after returning home.