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How China revamped its Higher Education System: Project 211, Project 985, C9 League, and Double First Class

According to QS World university rankings 2023, China has the third largest share of ranked universities in the world currently china has 71 universities ranked and it is just behind UK and USA which have 90 and 201 ranked universities respectively.  The rise of Chinese universities in globally is one of the greatest success stories in higher education.  In the QS World University Rankings 2023, 8 Chinese Universities were on the world’s best universities under 200 QS WUR Rank. Peking university (12) and Tsinghua University (14) have both improved from 18 and 17 (QS WUR 2022) ranks respectively.

This is due to the continuous effort put by China both in-terms or investment in education and internationalization of its universities. To attain world-class status in higher education, the Chinese government developed the Project 211, Project 985 and the C9 League in the mid-1990s.

The Chinese Ministry of Education (MoE) has taken 4 major initiatives especially targeting internationalization.

According to data from the Chinese government’s Ministry of Education (MOE), there are 3012 colleges and universities in mainland China. These Chinese universities are classified under three initiatives.

1. Project 211

Project 211 is an education initiative that started in 1995. The project has funded over 100 Chinese universities with the purpose of elevating them to international academic standards by the end of the 21st century. Project 211 also aims to support universities in their research standards and capacity.

All the universities in this project are all high-ranking in China and the world. They have the best teaching equipment and are internationally recognized for their research contributions. During the first phase of the project, from 1996 to 2000, approximately US$2 billion was distributed. The name for the project comes from an abbreviation of the slogan "In preparation for the 21st century, successfully managing 100 universities"

2. Project 985

With the Project 211 being a huge success, the Project 985 was created during the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Beijing University (May, 1998). The purpose of Project 985 is to create elite universities from the 39 universities under the 211 Project. It also aims to promote international cooperation and exchange, and attract international students.

Project 985 initially provided more funding to 9 Chinese universities. This includes: Tsinghua University, Zhejiang University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Xi’an Jiao Tong University, University of Science and Technology, Harbin Institute of Technology, Beijing University, Fudan University and Nanjing University.

In 2004, 30 additional Chinese universities were added during the second phase of the 985 Project.

In 2006, another 33 universities were selected from universities that had not been included in Project 985. The 33 selected universities are jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance of the People's Republic of China to support their developments in certain scientific or engineering subjects to meet the urgent need of the state. These 33 universities together are included in a sub-project of Project 985, called the "985 Project Innovation Platform Project".

In 2009, the original nine founding member universities of Project 985 formed the C9 League.By the end of the second phase of the project, 39 universities were sponsored. It was announced in 2011 that the project had closed, and no new schools would be able to join.

In 2014, some universities of Project 985 claimed that the project funding had been stopped in 2013.

In October 2015, the State Council of P.R.China published the 'Overall Plan for Promoting the Construction of World First-Class Universities and First-Class Disciplines (Double First Class University Plan)' , and made new arrangements for the development of higher education in China.

In 2016, the Ministry of Education of China confirmed that Project 985 had been abolished and replaced by the Double First Class University Plan.

Under Project 985 some universities were included in both Project lists, indicating their growing prestige and influence in the world of higher education. Shandong University, which was one of the first universities on both Project 211 and Project 985, is qualified to meet international standards and offer elite education. Project 985 members were classified as doctoral universities with very high research activities among all Chinese universities.

3. Double First Class

The Double First-Class University Plan is the most recent plan, founded in 2015. It comprises 42 Double First Class Universities (36 Class A schools and six Class B schools) and 465 first class disciplines spread among 140 schools (95 Double First Class Disciplines Universities).

The goal of this program is to comprehensively develop these universities and their faculties into world-class and globally-ranked universities by the year 2050. This involves increased investment and resources into the Double First Class universities to help develop their facilities.

As of 2020, Tsinghua University was officially declared a world-class university. Under the Double First Class plan, more Chinese universities are sure to follow!

4. C9 League

In 2009, the C9 League was formed out of the initial nine prestigious universities from Project 985. The purpose of the C9 League is to formally create an elite group of Chinese universities, attract the most talented students worldwide and share resources.

Member universities of the league receive substantial support and funding from the Chinese national and local governments. The C9 League hosts 3% of China’s research scholars, receives 10% of national research budget and produces 20% of cited academic papers in China. They are also a priority in grants and special privileges.

All the nine universities in the C9 League top major publications of world university rankings such as QS World, ARWU and Times Higher Education.

Higher education institutions under these projects are currently perceived as top-quality institutes globally. These higher educational institutions have a world-class professors and laboratories, globally-competitive curriculum, a vast network of powerful alumni, a diverse and highly talented international student population.

Many international companies recruit from these top Chinese institutes. Member universities under these initiatives have latest state-of-the-art laboratories and research facilities.