CHINA’S MODEL FOR FUTURE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT: FROM OVERSEAS STUDY TO WORK-INTEGRATED LEARNING

Abstract

The rapid transformation of global labor markets has intensified demand for future skills that extend beyond disciplinary knowledge to include professional communication, intercultural competence, networking capacity, and innovation-oriented thinking. Traditional university-based instruction and fully online learning formats increasingly struggle to cultivate these competencies within authentic professional environments. This article examines China’s contemporary model of future skills development through international work-integrated learning, with particular attention to structured internships in European companies. Adopting a historically grounded perspective, the study traces continuity between early twentieth-century Chinese overseas study initiatives, mid-twentieth-century educational exchanges with the Soviet Union, and today’s state-supported international internship programs. These experiences have informed the design of current learning strategies that integrate academic preparation with real-world professional immersion. The article analyses the objectives, institutional infrastructure, and pedagogical logic underpinning China’s international internship model, highlighting its emphasis on professional communication, network formation, engagement with European innovation ecosystems, and the cultivation of entrepreneurial and start-up mindsets among young specialists. As an applied case study, the article presents the China–EU Internship project initiated by AuxBridge, which places young Chinese specialists and university graduates in European companies and R&D teams. The case demonstrates how international internships function as work-integrated learning environments that support future skills development and cross-border knowledge exchange.