I understand that applying to Chinese Unniversities as a foreigner would be significantly easier as compared to applying as a Chinese (even though both I would assume would still be really hard.) Would I still be treated as a foreigner despite being ethnically chinese or would they just look at me as Chinese in the application process?
I am born and raised in America, but I do speak, read, and write Chinese, and I have a Beijing dialect. Basically, if I strike up a conversation with a Chinese speaker, they would assume that I am a native Chinese person.
Background about my grades: I go to a very competitive high school in SoCal, and I consider myself to be at the very least top 25% of my grade (school doesnt rank) and I plan on majoring in chemistry.
anyone who has knowledge of this situation please comment! thanks 
If you don’t go to a local Chinese school, it’s pretty much a safety. My friend got into Peking University with a 2.5 or something. You’ll pretty much get in as long as you meet the general requirements. The only problem is that the teach classes in Chinese. I wouldn’t recommend going there even though it’s highly ranked because the dorms are extremely bad.
@FiddleMySticks Oh that’s good to know FiddlyMySticks! Was your friend also an American born Chinese who went to a public high school? My GPA is around 3.9 unweighted, and I take around 2 AP/Honors courses each year. Also, I’m not planning on staying in a dorm there, because I can just stay with my grandparents who live in the area. Thanks for the heads up though!
I actually did this for grad school and met undergrads from the US who did as well.
benefits:
-affordability: given you apply for the chinese government scholarship, it covers all expenses and includes a stipend which is outrageously advantageous compared to american universities
-leverage: definitely leverage the fact that you’re “american” to access opportunities unavailable to local chinese students, and the fact that you do speak chinese to engage with the local chinese student population to take advantage other resources as well
in terms of dorms from the comment above, the dorms really aren’t that bad even for local students, nonetheless intl students have a dorm that was converted from a hotel building. so its comparatively nicer than most american dorms, and i would rank it at at least 3-4 star hotel.
-exposure: you’re studying with some of the smartest people in the entire country, take advantage of this to engage in more conversations
-mobile/digital revolution: their local “uber”, “paypal”, “yelp”, “groupon” probably started before us, even if it didn’t, its definitely been taken to a much higher level at a quicker pace. interesting insight to technology advancement
-startup culture: definitely something to take advantage of partaking in since its really accessible and a lot easier for us to test ideas in beijing’s startup hub than in the US (funding wise as well)
-currency: obviously cost of living is a lot lower, so leverage this to take advantage of trying many new things, new ideas, new opportunities
-making money: wages are significantly higher for foreigners (might be more valuable to have an undergrad US degree though, that was easier for me to get jobs/credibility; but regardless, teaching english and translating is always a good gig
cons: (more like considerations)
-chinese students will expect and judge unfairly sometimes
-pollution
-lack of diversity: after a while you will notice a lack of diversity (not just in people, but ideas/thoughts) and might crave some more creativity
-it is unfair sometimes, like tuition and housing and medical insurance is all subsidized for local students, but housing is 30x more expensive for foreigners. same with doctor visits, insurance, school trips…etc.
i definitely think the benefits outweigh the cons though. especially if you’re fluent in chinese and have a genuine passion/interest in chinese culture/history. I find it a great opportunity to join reading clubs and student orgs where I get to learn ancient text in chinese from historical perspective vs learning chinese in america (although I never took chinese in the US, I was self-taught, but i think in China you get to really have a better and deeper appreciation and understanding of our language).