Chinese universities pursue more than global prestige

BEIJING - While the big names in Chinese higher education have surged up a global university ranking, insiders have stressed the need for further reform.

Tsinghua University moving to 26th from 36th last year, and Peking University rising nine places to 32nd in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2015 published earlier this month.

"China's growing stature should lead to further improvements, as a strong reputation helps universities to attract and retain more global talent and investment," Phil Baty, editor of the rankings, said.

But Chinese educators have been quick to point out that improving Chinese higher education is about more than a simple numbers game.

Zheng Qiang, principal of Guizhou University, believes Chinese universities should not get over-excited about the rankings.

They should position themselves to suit their own local conditions and give graduates the skills to serve their communities, Zheng said.

Southwest China's Guizhou Province is famous for producing the country's top liquor brand, Moutai, and Guizhou University opened the School of Liquor and Food Engineering in 2013 to cultivate talent for the distilling industry.

Peking University's new principal has also warned against blind pursuit of prestige or financial success. "The spirit of higher education should be simple but pure and it should not be lured by money and fame," according to Lin Jianhua.

Many other senior educators agree with Zheng and Lin's ideas.

"Besides filling students with knowledge, universities should also teach them career planning," said Guo Dacheng, former secretary of the Beijing Institute of Technology's committee of the Communist Party of China.

Guo suggested universities should carry out more non-profit activities to instill a sense of social responsibility in students.

Last year, China adopted a decade-long plan to overhaul its college entrance exam and university enrollment system to make it fairer, ease pressure on high school students and encourage more creative thinkers.

In the country's annual political sessions, which concluded on March 15, the central government vowed to advance reform and speed up integration of vocational education with industry.