(Information as of 18 September 2020)
On 16 September 2020, China’s Ministry of
Education (MoE) announced four new temporary measures to assist Chinese
international students enrolled in overseas institutions but who remain in
China, unable to travel to their overseas study destination as a result of the
pandemic, to continue their studies The
announcement – titled (translated)
MoE
adopts active measures to address difficulties for Chinese students to travel
abroad during the pandemic period - is available on the MoE website
here, and a summary (based on an unofficial
translation) is provided below.
The four measures include:
1. Assistance for students undertaking online
classes in China, including by clarifying the Chinese Government’s flexible
approach to recognition of qualifications obtained partly online due to
COVID-19
The MoE’s announcement referred to the ‘special
notice’ issued in April 2020 by the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange
(CSCSE), which indicated students who were: affected by the pandemic; unable to
return to school; and chose to continue their studies online would not be
penalised when it came to the verification of their academic degree This approach is a temporary departure from
China’s usual policy of not recognising overseas qualifications obtained
online More information is available in
our policy piece
here.
2. Allow certain Chinese universities to
provide short term learning and exchange opportunities for these students, pursuant
to exchange agreements with foreign universities.
3. Allow certain MoE-approved Chinese-Foreign
joint institutes and programs (including some with Australian providers) to
accept Chinese international students by encouraging eligible joint
institutes and programs to expand their undergraduate and postgraduate
recruitment for the 2020-21 academic year
The transcript of a Q&A session between the head
of the MoE’s Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges (Office of
Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Affairs) and the press was published by the MoE on
the same day as the announcement, which offered some insight into the MoE’s
consideration for making the decision. The transcript is available on the MoE
website
here.
An attachment list containing all eligible projects
identified by the MoE was provided with the transcript document. The list includes
41 eligible joint institutes (Tier 1 and Tier 2) and 49 eligible joint programs
in Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Liaoning, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui,
Fujian, Jiangxi, Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Hainan, Sichuan,
Guizhou and Shanxi.
The list contains four
Chinese-Australian joint institutes:
·
SILC
Business School,
Shanghai University (partnership between University Technology,
Sydney and Shanghai University)
·
Southeast
University-Monash University Joint Graduate School(Suzhou) (partnership
between Monash University and Southeast University )
·
International
Engineering College of Xi’an University of Technology (partnership between James
Cook University and Xi’An University of Technology)
·
Xi’an
University of Architecture and Technology University of South Australia An De
College (partnership between University of South Australia and Xi’An
University of Architecture and Technology )
It also contains four Chinese-Australian joint programs:
·
Master of
Management Specializing in Technology and Innovation program (partnership
between Australian National University and Tsinghua University)
·
Master of
Applied Finance program(partnership between Macquarie University and
Tsinghua University)
·
Bachelor
of Business Program (partnership between Victoria University and Central
University of Finance and Economics) and
·
Master of
Educational Leadership and Management Program (partnership between University
of Canberra and Hangzhou Normal University)
The list also contains 11 US joint institutes and 17 joint programs; 15
UK joint institutes and 7 joint programs [1]; one New Zealand joint institute
and one joint program; and four Canadian joint programs.
It is understood that the enrolment quotas for each of the listed
institutes and programs are being extended by a certain amount to take on
additional students, and these students will be considered ‘non-quota’, meaning
they will not affect the ordinary enrolment quotas for the institute or program.
The MoE announcement does not specify
the enrolment numbers However, some
individual institutes have posted figures on their website For example, the Xi’An Jiaotong Liverpool
University joint institute has advertised it will take 100 students The Lancaster University College at Beijing
Jiaotong University, also a joint institute, has announced it will take 104
students.
Interested students need to apply for admission into these programs. If
successful in a merit-based process, they would study the foreign
curriculum/course only (instead of the usual practice in joint institutes and
programs of studying both the Chinese and foreign courses), and be awarded the
foreign degree only
4. Strengthen external communication – The
MoE noted it had provided advice to the education sections of Chinese embassies
and consulates abroad to liaise with education authorities and universities in host
countries to address the problems associated with the ‘academic hindrance of
Chinese international students.’
For further
enquiries, please contact the
Education and Research Section (Department of Education,
Skills and Employment) of the Australian Embassy in Beijing.
[1] The Faculty of International Media, Communication
University of China is a joint institute established between Communication
University of China, New York Institute of Technology from US and Nottingham
Trent University from the UK. This joint institute is counted towards the total
number of joint institute for both US and UK.