English-taught academic programs are becoming increasingly mature: German universities are rapidly expanding English-taught undergraduate majors, covering flagship and cutting-edge fields such as mechanical engineering and artificial intelligence; the proportion of English-taught programs is even higher at the master’s and doctoral levels, effectively eliminating language barriers. High-quality academic resources are readily accessible: across Europe, 51 universities rank within the top 200 globally (QS World University Rankings). Prestigious groups—such as Germany’s TU9 Alliance, the Netherlands’ 4TU Federation, and France’s ParisTech—offer numerous fully funded doctoral positions, with some programs providing three-to-four-year full scholarships alongside pathways to work visas. The policy environment remains stable and welcoming: following Germany’s full reopening of language-learning visas in 2023, the number of international students has rebounded significantly; the DAAD projects that the total number of international students in German higher education will reach approximately 405,000 in the 2024/25 winter semester, a year-on-year increase of about 7%. Meanwhile, France’s higher education agency is launching new policies for 2025 to further refine service standards for international students and enhance transparency in application processing and scholarship accessibility.

Notably, there is a structural shift in the choice of academic disciplines: electrical engineering has surpassed the traditionally popular field of mechanical manufacturing to become the top choice for Chinese students pursuing doctoral studies in Germany. Simultaneously, institutions such as French business schools, top Dutch technical universities, and Sweden’s Uppsala University are opening up a large number of doctoral admission slots in interdisciplinary fields—including sustainable energy, digital health, and human-computer interaction—with English-taught programs accounting for over 72% of the offerings.

Furthermore, application pathways are becoming increasingly diverse. Taking Germany as an example, the “direct admission based on Gaokao results” (Chinese college entrance exam) program has gained significant momentum since its implementation in 2020. Between 2022 and 2024, nearly 60% of students admitted to German undergraduate or combined bachelor-master programs secured their places based on their Chinese high school credentials; notably, applicants entering directly from high school accounted for 59.63% of admissions at TU9 elite universities. This trend is now extending to doctoral preparatory stages, opening up new avenues for recent undergraduates who demonstrate strong potential for scientific research.