As the education of international students has developed into a key component of the economic mix for many Western democracies, approaches to the evaluation of success or failure have become increasingly based on the type of buyer-seller relationship that features strongly in the management and marketing literature. As a result, an activity that has historically been assessed in terms of its contribution to the public good is now more likely to be measured through application of the language of business. This article analyzes the comments of 160 Chinese students attending courses at a New Zealand institution and suggests that the criteria that contribute to a positive experience evaluation, when viewed through the eyes of students, may not entirely coincide with the "business language" criteria that education providers believe to be critical. The article concludes that significant changes in institutional philosophy are necessary if the true value of providing tertiary education to international students is to be optimally realized. (Contains 2 tables and 1 figure.)