According to news released yesterday by the Ministry of Education of the PRC, China has sent 1,391,500 students to study overseas via various avenues over the last 30 years. Among them, about one million remained abroad. Only 390,000 returned to China, a return rate of 28 percent.
Source: China News Agency, March 26, 2008
http://www.chinanews.com.cn/edu/kong/news/2009/03-26/1618111.shtml