BEIJING — A total of 459,800 Chinese left China to study abroad in 2014, the Ministry of Education said on March 5.

Among those departing for overseas study last year, 21,300 were sponsored with public funds, 15,500 with funding by their employers, and the other 423,000 at their own expense, the ministry said.

Over 360,000 students returned home from abroad in 2014. Compared with the figures for 2013, the number of students studying abroad and returning home increased by 11.1 percent and 3.2 percent respectively.

From 1978, when China started its opening-up policy, to 2014, over 3.51 million Chinese have gone abroad for study, according to the ministry. As of the end of last year, almost 1.7 million Chinese students were studying abroad. Since 1978, 1.81 million students have returned home after studying.