Summary:

China has recently released specific implementing measures relating to the country’s World Class Universities project. The measures, released by the Ministry of Education along with the Ministry of Finance, the National Development and Reform Commission, give additional information on the selection, assessment and management of candidate universities and disciplines.

The measures relate to the “Overall Plan of coordinated development of World-Class Universities and Disciplines (统筹推进世界一流大学和一流学科建设总体方案)” announced by the State Council in On 5 November 2015, also known as the “dual first class” project. The project aims to lift the status and standing and international competitiveness of China’s higher education system.

The selection process will identify institutions for support over five-year periods, based on the overall quality, subject strengths and development level of candidate universities; those that do not perform well will have their funding cut in subsequent rounds.

The implementation measures include,

1. To select candidate HEIs for both “first-class universities” and "first-class disciplines". Selection of first-class universities (or world-class universities) will be based on the universities’ overall strengths and will aim to comprehensively enhance the level of personnel training and innovation capacity; while candidates for first-class (or world-class) disciplines will promote disciplines with particular advantages and characteristics.

Specifically, candidates for world-class universities should have advanced management strategy and strong management and schooling capabilities, with high social recognition among the general public, with a certain number of high-level disciplines at the forefront of their field domestically and internationally and strong performance in the innovative reform and modern university system development. Candidates for world-class disciplines should have high-level disciplines in the forefront of their field, making a major contribution to international scientific research, with a significant role to serve national strategic demands and contribute to domestic economic and social development

2. To stimulate the vitality of HEIs via open competition to all domestic HEIs, selecting candidate HEIs in accordance with certain selection criteria as opposed to a separate application process. Support will be adjusted I line with performance – HEIs with more effective performance will receive increased support, while support for those that lack substantial outcomes will be reduced. Evaluation will take into account both domestic and international third-party evaluations.

3. To cultivate qualified universities weeding out unqualified institutions based on dynamic launching performance assessments over a five-year period. HEIs with major problems, or no improvement after rectification and warning, will be removed from the list at the end of the development period (5 years), rather than setting up “life-long identities”.

4. To strengthen and improve the party's leadership of HEIs, improve internal governance structures, and speed up the construction of a modern university system with Chinese characteristics

The selection process relies mainly on an Expert Committee comprised of high-level strategic expertise from relevant government departments, universities, research institutions and industry organisations, invited by the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Finance and National Development and Reform Commission. The expert committee will use influential third-party evaluation outcomes at home and abroad to demonstrate the criteria for selecting candidate HEIs, and to propose a shortlist of candidate universities for the further approval of the State Council.

According to the Measures, candidate universities are encouraged to develop clear orientations and characteristics in an effort to address a trend of universities’ homogenization in China. They encourage development of about 100 disciplines that are approaching or have reached world-leading levels, or new and interdisciplinary disciplines addressing domestic urgent demands, concerning national security and supporting the transformation of industrial upgrading or regional development.

The document also encourages development of emerging disciplines, inter-disciplinary work and disciplines that meet China’s current needs to bolster industrial upgrades and regional development.

Analysis by Kevin Prest and Xiaoxiao Liu:

The World Class Universities project aims to build up the capacity of China’s top universities, both in general and in specific subject areas. Institutions identified for support under this scheme will make good partners for UK institutions looking for joint research partnerships in relevant fields as well as other forms of cooperation.

Sources:

1. The Policy Document (Specific Measures) in Chinese: http://www.moe.edu.cn/srcsite/A22/moe_843/201701/t20170125_295701.html

2. Q&A by the Ministry of Education: http://www.moe.edu.cn/jyb_xwfb/s271/201701/t20170125_295695.html

3. http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/2017-02/06/content_40229269.htm

4. http://english.gov.cn/policies/policy_watch/2017/02/16/content_281475569214034.htm

5. Education Minister Chen Baosheng at the Press Conference of the two sessions of the CPC in March 2017: http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xwfb/gzdt_gzdt/moe_1485/201703/t20170313_299293.html