The number of Chinese going overseas to study will continue to grow, an education agent said.

"It is increasingly common to see Chinese parents choosing to send their children abroad, though the trend is more prominent in certain regions, such as Shenzhen and Xiamen," said He Chugang, regional general manager for South China for Amber Education, a Hong Kong-based education-counseling firm.

In 2012, his branch office based in Guangzhou provided advisory services to 1,202 students under 18 who wished to study abroad. The figure was 641 in 2011.

About 15 percent of the 1,202 young students wishing to go to school overseas last year were age 14 or younger, He said.

In the past few years, the number of students signing up for the domestic college entrance exams has declined.

Jin Zhu