Elite Universities in China

Abstract

Abstract Modern Chinese higher education has grown from a humble base since the late nineteenth century into the world’s largest system on many fronts today. China aims to further promote its socio-economic development and global impact through an ambidextrous strategy to build world-class universities with Chinese characteristics. This chapter conceptualizes the idea of elite universities in China, reviews China’s world-class university policies since the 1950s, and maps the current status of China’s elite universities in terms of their objectives, academic performance, funding situations, international collaboration, and global impact. While the pursuit of equity is one of the main characteristics of China’s elite university system, elite universities have served as an important mechanism for social stratification in Chinese society. Despite many achievements, there are still many challenges behind China’s world-class university blueprint，particularly on how to deal with the tensions between top-down directives and bottom-up initiatives.