Changchun for international students: China's automotive capital and its cheapest university city

Jilin University

JLU is one of the largest universities in China by area and enrolment, formed from five merged institutions. It is the country's leading school for automotive engineering, and also strong in chemistry, law, geology and veterinary medicine. Its medical school is named after Norman Bethune, the Canadian physician who served in China and is still a national symbol.

Because of the merger, the university is spread over six campuses; check which one your programme uses — some are far from the city centre.

Costs

A dormitory budget of CNY 2,100–2,700 per month is realistic here, making Changchun the cheapest large student city in China outside the far west. Off-campus rooms start around CNY 1,000–1,800.

Food, transport and entertainment are all proportionally cheap, and the campus canteens are among the least expensive in the country.

Automotive industry access

FAW Group, Volkswagen China, Audi and a large tier-one supplier base are all in or around Changchun. JLU's College of Automotive Engineering has a direct recruitment and research relationship with them, and its graduates are heavily represented in Chinese vehicle engineering.

For a student who wants a Chinese automotive career, Changchun gives access that is hard to match anywhere else — at a fraction of the cost of living in Beijing or Shanghai.

Climate and culture

Winters are long and severe (-20 °C in January is normal) with heated campuses; summers are short and pleasant at 20–28 °C. The city has a large Korean ethnic community, a film industry dating back to the 1940s, and the Changchun Film Studio.

High-speed rail reaches Harbin in 1.5 hours, Beijing in 4.5 hours and Shenyang in 2.