Incorporation and University Governance: The Chinese Experience, Using University Enrolment Expansion Policy as an Example

Abstract

At the end of 1998, the Chinese central government decided to raise China's level of participation in higher education dramatically. While the move was influenced by a combination of both domestic and external forces, it was a decision fundamentally based on economic considerations. Using the university enrolment expansion policy as an example, this article interrogates the rationale for and the contexts of this policy-making. It then analyses the measures and consequences of the implementation of this policy to illustrate the changing governance in mainland Chinese universities.

Notes

1. In this article, “China” refers to mainland China, for ease of expression. I recognise that, in constitutional terms, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan are all parts of China.

2. For example, in 1999, the average incomes of peasant and urban residents in the east region were 3,344.6 and 9,125.92 yuan, respectively, while in the west they were 1,604.1 and 4472.91 yuan, respectively.