Summary
In late January 2021 China's Ministry of Education announced new guidelines for bachelor's-level vocational education. The guidelines set out rules for HEIs applying to establish new programmes of this kind, which were first formally proposed in 2019 and represent a relatively new form of higher education in China. Bachelor's-level vocational education is distinct from the country's existing system of three-year higher vocational diplomas.
The recent announcement describes bachelor's-level vocational education as "serving the upgrading of the industrial base and the modernisation of the industrial chain" as well as supporting the needs of a modern economy. It calls for provincial education departments to make plans for this form of education in their respective regions while the Ministry of Education will draw up a list of relevant majors.
The bulk of the announcement sets out requirements for HEIs applying to set up these programmes, such as rules for student/teacher ratios, required qualifications of teaching staff (including a requirement that at least 20 per cent of teaching hours be delivered by part-time teaching staff who are also employed in the relevant industry) and the need for cooperation with local companies in related fields. The requirements state that both universities and higher vocational colleges may apply to offer these programmes, but at higher vocational colleges the total enrolment in bachelor's-level programmes may not be more than 30 per cent of total enrolment.
Analysis by Kevin Prest, Senior Analyst, British Council International Education Services
The introduction of bachelor's-level vocational education shows the continuing importance of vocational education to China's development plans. This has been an important priority in many of the country's recent education policies, with the goal of linking the education system more closely to China's development needs.
The new programmes will allow subjects to be studied at a greater depth than programmes at the diploma level, but another major reason behind the policy might be a goal to increase the prestige of vocational programmes. One of the factors affecting vocational education in China (as in many other countries) is that higher vocational diplomas are seen as lower status than bachelor's degrees, with high-achieving students generally preferring to study at universities rather than higher vocational colleges, and changing these perceptions has been mentioned as a goal in a number of different government plans.
The announcements did not contain any information on the likely scale of bachelor's-level vocational education in China, which will likely depend on the progress of trial programmes.
Source
Ministry of Education: Trial Administrative Measures for the Establishment of Bachelor's Degree Level Vocational Education Majors - http://www.moe.gov.cn/srcsite/A07/zcs_zhgg/202101/t20210129_511682.html