More than 2273 institutes, 23 million students and five million new enrolments each year – China’s university system can offer breathtaking figures. In this respect every other country in the world is eclipsed. In the context of the first “Presidential Lecture”, which continues the tradition of the previous 20 GEP lectures (Gesellschaft Ehemaliger Polytechniker), 59-year-old Qidi Wu, who is responsible for the Chinese higher education sector, presented the current situation and the objectives aimed at by the government.

ETH: springboard for a high-flying career

Before this, however, Qidi Wu explained her career to the large audience who were present. An important foundation for this was her ETH doctorate, which she worked for during a five-year stay at the Institute for Automation with Professor Schaufelberger from 1981 to 1986. In German, it should be noted, and without previously knowing a single word of the language, as ETH President Ernst Hafen acknowledged in his welcoming speech. After returning to China she was appointed to a Chair at the renowned University of Tongji. Her career advanced rapidly there, culminating in assuming the Presidency of Tongji in 1995. Then after eight years her career took another step forward: in 2003 Qidi Wu became China’s Vice-minister for Education. She is responsible for the entire higher education field and for vocational training. Qidi Wu said “The experience that I gained in Switzerland and at ETH has helped me again and again in my work."

An discrepancy in domestic development

A tumultuous development began when China opened up in 1978, which completely changed both the educational system and the economy. Firstly it involved implementing the nine-year period of compulsory schooling and eliminating illiteracy – no small matter with today’s population of 1.3 billion. A vocational training system was introduced at the same time. These aims were practically achieved by the turn of the century. Today China’s higher education policy concentrates on three criteria: development, quality and setting priorities. The Minister said their ambitious aim was to increase the proportion of those going through higher education from the current 21 percent to 40 percent by 2020. She added that this involved overcoming the problem of the gigantic discrepancy that existed between the east, which was in part highly developed, and the backward west. The intention was to remedy this through specific East-West partnerships between institutions.

Determined internationalisation

Qidi Wu intends to encourage the universities to pay more attention to quality improvements than to increasing the number of students, by establishing an external assessment mechanism among other things. In addition, 100 universities have been given the task of supporting China’s development in the 21st century decisively through their output of knowledge. Furthermore, 30 selected institutions such as the Universities of Beijing and Tsinghua are even to become world class universities, although without relinquishing their ties with Chinese tradition, as Wu stressed after her lecture. The state also intends to counteract the general burden of theory in the education at China’s universities and colleges.

ETH President Ernst Hafen, China’s Vice-minister for Education Qidi Wu and ETH Alumni President Eduard Brunner (l. to r.) at the “Presidential Lecture” hosted by ETH Alumni. large

According to Qidi Wu, to make further progress there should be a high level of investment in international collaboration: “We live in a globalised world. Development needs talented people with an international background.” She emphasised that this must always produce a win-win situation for both parties. Thus China is encouraging greater mobility among both its own and foreign students. There are corresponding agreements with Oxford, Harvard and the University of Sydney. Chinese higher education institutes are also being encouraged to enter into research co-operation agreements with foreign partners. Beijing University was already going one step further, said Wu. It was operating a joint training program with Stanford University. Both institutes had also established “offshore campuses” with their partners. In general the courses at China’s higher educational institutes should include increasing amounts of international knowledge: “We have made great progress in adopting teaching material from abroad.” English is also starting to become established in tuition in the former Middle Kingdom: the University of Tsinghua already lists 15 percent of lectures in English.

The Swiss are welcome

Wu thinks that the Swiss universities, especially ETH (which represents the Leading House of Swiss research relationships with China), could profit from the opening strategy. Swiss students would be very welcome, even preferably to work in China afterwards as well. In return, Switzerland would be one of the preferred destinations for the many students who want to gain experience abroad. She said that China’s claim to be turning into a land of innovation corresponded extremely well with Switzerland’s proven power of innovation.

The Vice-minister for Education recommended ETH to define areas of collaboration with one or more strong Chinese partners, and also to launch reciprocal doctoral student and bachelor degree programs, which would promote not only an academic exchange but a social and cultural one as well. Qidi Wu concluded with her creed, which is that universities are given an obligation to communicate as well as to teach, research and provide services. "This is the only way to create mutual understanding and constructive collaboration across national boundaries."(1)

Seizing opportunities now

ETH President Ernst Hafen took up this theme and urged that the opportunities currently opening up in China should be seized. According to Hafen, “Education, not just research, is now becoming global.” ETH, anchored in tiny Switzerland, must adopt an intelligent position in this situation and must look for partners in large developing countries such as China that had an enormous potential of talented people at their disposal. He said that with Qidi Wu at the head of the Chinese higher education system, the conditions were ideal for the creation of a strong connection in this country.