Abstract
This essay studies the University of Nottingham Ningbo China and Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University—the two Chinese campuses established respectively by the University of Nottingham and the University of Liverpool. They represent successful models of globalization of higher education in China; however their rationale, strategies, curricula, partnership, and orientation are very different. Through a comparative analysis, the paper reveals their unique development and offers a template for studies of globalization of higher education in China and elsewhere through branch campuses.
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Notes
Chen (2007) surveys financial contributions to Chinese education by wealthy individuals from Ningbo. Philanthropic causes in Chinese education remain limited because of a combination of factors including the level of economic development, the tax laws and codes, the absence of private colleges, etc. The experience of Ningbo, however, does offer an exception to the general lack of private sponsorships in education.
It fell on October 10, 1841, a date that later happened to be the National Day of the Republic of China.
The data in this section were from 2009, unless noted otherwise.
QS World University Rankings (2011). Retrieved from http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2011?page=2&campaignkw=Employersurvey2012%2Fsubject-rankings%2Flife-science-biomedicine.
Wikipedia (2012). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Nottingham#cite_note-32.
Shanghai Jiaotong University: Academic Ranking of World Universities (2011). Retrieved from http://www.arwu.org.
The notion by the Agora Discussion Paper that “To pursue their Ningbo venture, Nottingham appointed Yang Fujia…as chancellor” (p. 27) was incorrect. According to the author’s interview with Yang Fujia in June 2009, the idea of a Chinese campus was initiated by Yang after he was appointed Chancellor.
Unlike private institutions, Zhejiang Wanli Educational Group registers its fixed assets, amounting to 800 million yuan, as the public property and through the government’s audit ensures that “all funds are spent on educational operations and that all expenditures are reasonable and efficient” (Xu 2007, 5).
It was said that Zhejiang Wanli Educational Group spent about 600 million yuan or 8.8 million US dollars in the first-phase of construction; the second phase would require an even greater sum. Wanli Educational Group also manages non-academic student services such as dining halls and dormitories. The municipal government as a third partner provided 960 mu, or about 158 acres of land for the use by the University. Without this support of land by the government, it would have been impossible to start a campus. Interestingly, the generous land offer by the city was met ambivalently by Nottingham. The Chinese policy on land use by a university is based on the number of students per mu. Nottingham was not ready to contemplate a large campus and, alternately, less land would be more consistent with the size of students it planned to have on the new campus. Ultimately, the support for land value won the argument, but not without compromise: the campus was to have lakes and rivers, thereby reducing the total amount of usable land. As a result, the campus was graced with the Nottingham Lake and the Nottingham River which is spanned by seven bridges.
Interview with Chancellor Yang Fujia in June 2009.
Ibid.
At UNNC, all students are required to take a class that is not on the transcript of UNNC and must pass it in order to graduate: Survey of Chinese Tradition and Culture. This class runs 2 h a week for the first year and covers ancient Chinese philosophers such as Confucius, Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi, along with Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, and Karl Marx.
A student I met on the basketball court told me that he was particularly attracted to the park-like campus and easy access to the faculty. His sister also graduated from UNNC. He and his fellow students took great pride in being part of UNNC. “Students here are bonded and are actively involved in learning. We are of a common identity.” He also felt happy that students had good access to the Administration. “I can schedule a meeting with the Provost or the Head of the Department easily.” An international business major, he plans to pursue graduate studies in economics in the UK or US.
Based on the field trip to Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University in June 2010.
QS World University Rankings (2011). Retrieved from http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2011?page=2&campaignkw=Employersurvey2012%2Fsubject-rankings%2Flife-science-biomedicine.
Shanghai Jiaotong University: Academic Ranking of World Universities (2011). Retrieved from http://www.arwu.org.
Wikipedia (2012). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xi'an_Jiaotong_University.
Xi’an Jiaotong University was ranked first place nationwide in dynamics and thermal engineering physics, management science and engineering, and business; second place in electrical engineering, and third place in mechanical engineering. Baidu Baike (Encyclopedia) (2012). Retrieved from http://baike.baidu.com/view/892706.htm.
Baidu Baike (Encyclopedia) (2012). Retrieved from http://baike.baidu.com/view/892706.htm.
Strictly speaking, all degrees issued at Chinese universities and colleges are national degrees, namely, all belonging to the People’s Republic of China, under the regulations of the Ministry of Education. A university or college also provides a diploma indicating graduation from a specific university or college. Therefore, a graduate receives two documents: a degree approved by the Ministry of Education through an institution and the institution’s own diploma.
The Park started in 2004 as a joint venture with Singapore for the purpose of adapting the technology, management and administration of Singapore in China. Since 2004, the Park, with 4 % of the land and 5 % of the population of Suzhou, created annually 16 % of total output of the city, growing at an annual rate of 30 %. In 2009, there were 640 enterprises producing an output of 5.1 billion RMB. It had 14 universities or branch campuses in 2009, educating and training 28,223 graduate or undergraduate students. As a research and development incubator, it had 107 entities with R&D expenses over 125 million RMB. The applications for intellectual property rights increased from 30 in 2004 to 1,000 in 2009. Annualized investment rose from 0.6 billion to 4.78 billion RMB during the same period of time. The building area completed jumped from 100,000 square meters in 2004 to 1 million square meters in 2009. In 2009, the Park had a population of 68,000, including 56,000 temporary residents and 12,000 permanent residents. To attract investors and researchers from overseas, many of whom are Chinese, the Park built a spacious church facility on the lake.
At Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool, a mentor from a non-academic setting is also assigned to students preparing their job search and applied knowledge.
The occupants of the Suzhou Industrial Park rent the facilities from the Park and after a number of years (e.g. 15 through 20) may have the first right of refusal to purchase the facilities at the original cost of building.
China is emerging as the largest economy, replacing the United States within the next two to three decades according to the forecasting consensus. It is leading the world out of the current financial crisis that started in the United States in October 2008. In the summer of 2010, it surpassed Japan to become the second largest economy in the world.
Interview with Provost Roger Woods in June 2009.
The largest international student groups at the University of Nottingham are Chinese and Malaysian students; among its 23,310 students in 2010, 914 were from China and 504 from Malaysia, the only two countries where the University of Nottingham set up campuses.
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Acknowledgments
The author thanks two anonymous reviewers for their excellent comments and discussions that have led to the improvements of the manuscript. He also wishes to thank Bruce Jiang for discussions on globalization of higher education in China and Piotr M. Zagorowski for editorial assistance and substantive comments. Ms. Betty Hagelbarger read an earlier version of the manuscript, and he is indebted to her for her unfailing support.
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Feng, Y. University of Nottingham Ningbo China and Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University: globalization of higher education in China. High Educ 65, 471–485 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-012-9558-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-012-9558-8