Next Step China chose Shanghai because of the many opportunities that it offers. Shanghai is the second largest city in China in terms of population and one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world, with a population of more than 19 million people.

While Beijing is considered the educational center of China, Shanghai is also home to some of the country’s most prestigious universities, like Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

As a result of economic reforms in1990, intense development and financing in Shanghai has occurred , and in 2005, Shanghai became the world’s busiest cargo port. Since 2005, Shanghai has been ranked as the world’s busiest cargo ports, handling a total of 560 million tons of cargo in 2007. Shanghai container traffic has surpassed Hong Kong to become the second busiest port in the world, behind Singapore.

Now over 300 of the world’s top 500 enterprises have opened branches in Shanghai, while many have their research and development centers or headquarters there. Shanghai’s rapid development has come as a great surprise to many in China and has spawned international recognition. Shanghai has grown from a provincial city into an international metropolis on par with New York and Paris in just two decades. This has never been accomplished by any other city.

Since the 1990s, the number of overseas students has been steadily growing. In 2002, Shanghai enrolled 13,081 overseas students from more than 100 countries and regions. Shanghai has always been welcoming to overseas students in order to promote scientific and cultural exchange and to strengthen mutual support and cooperation with other countries.