Beijing ( CNN ) -- On the leafy campus of Beijing Foreign Studies University , one of China 's most prestigious foreign language schools , graduating senior Gao Yue and her classmates go about their daily routine of studying and playing , showing little sign of anxiety over the impending dive into the real world . Gao , a 22-year-old journalism major , has long planned her future outside China ever since she spent a month in the United States as an exchange student during high school . Going overseas after college is not a question of if , but when , she says . And it 's not about a higher living standard . `` Press control is quite strict in China and we 're looking for free speech , '' she said . `` I think critical thinking is one of the most important things I want to pursue abroad . '' `` In China , the kind of education pushes people to think the same way , to drive them to the 'right ' answer -- and I think being a journalist , being critical is the most important thing , '' she added . Gao is hardly alone in preparing to leave China , despite the nation 's rapid economic growth during a global slump . As Beijing embarks on a once-in-a-decade leadership change , many observers say the opaque process of power transition is adding more uncertainty to a country already faced with challenges ranging from a widening income gap , a worsening natural environment , to rampant official corruption and the lack of free speech . Nationwide , the education ministry 's latest statistics show that almost 1.5 million Chinese are studying overseas , making China the largest source of foreign students for the rest of the world . The number of Chinese students going abroad has grown more than 20 % every year since 2009 , according to the government . Read : Why the Chinese are flocking to U.S. colleges . A likely more worrying trend for the authorities is how billionaire entrepreneurs are moving away , along with their money and talent . Hurun Report , a magazine best known for its ranking of the wealthiest individuals in China , recently surveyed 1,000 super-rich Chinese , finding 60 % of the respondents either in the process of immigrating or seriously considering it . `` What we are seeing is a sense of insecurity or , perhaps you want to look at it from another side , looking for a sense of insurance policy , '' said Rupert Hoogewerf , publisher of Hurun Report . `` So they are beginning to quite actively try and get a green card in the U.S. , Canada , Australia and Singapore . '' The latest wave of exodus , especially among the younger generation , is helping people like Jinbo Xie do brisk business . Xie founded and runs BeBeyond , a personal development training firm with some 40 employees as well as branches in Beijing and Shanghai . His company prepares thousands of young Chinese like Gao every year to study abroad and charges them as much as $ 2,500 for a six-week course . Xie , 45 , belongs to a group called `` sea turtles '' -- a nickname that plays on the sound of the Mandarin word for overseas returnees . When he came back to China in 2001 after studying and working in the United States for eight years , `` sea turtles '' were all the rage . The phenomenon has tapered off in recent years as China 's economic growth -- though still impressive by global standards -- slows . Xie says many returnees also start to find adapting to their motherland much harder than they thought . `` In the past two years , people made up their mind to go abroad again due to the exposure of environmental pollution , food safety and other problems in China , '' he said . Xie remains unfazed himself and even did something unthinkable to most Chinese : To focus on growing his company , he gave up his American green card two years ago . `` It 's very exciting here -- a lot is happening , '' he explained . `` We do have the chance to make some impact . '' `` Even though we have a lot of problems , setbacks and whatever , at some point , we 'll be there -- that 's how I feel , '' he added .
Despite China 's rapid economic growth , some desire life abroad . Some say opaque power transition adding more uncertainty to the country . Comment: Chinese who live overseas and return are called `` sea turtles ''