ABSTRACT
Since the late 1990s, China has aimed to build world-class universities (WCUs). The Chinese state has initiated a series of governance reforms to promote the development of research universities while still maintaining strong political control over campuses. This chapter traces the policy trajectory of WCU construction and higher education governance reforms in China against a backdrop of “arms race” among global research universities. Emphasis is placed on the changing relationship between the twin expectations of the state: developing WCUs and maintaining political stability. Three major trends of the governance reforms are analysed. First, the mode of government regulation has been shifted from direct control to indirect supervision. Second, a range of liberal-oriented reforms along the market line have fostered a system of autonomy and accountability. Third, the mode of political intervention has been transformed from total control to a strategy of stability maintenance. In discussing these three aspects, the chapter reveals the contradiction between two philosophies of governance – authoritarianism and liberalism – implied in China’s higher education governance reforms. Through combining such two principles, the Chinese state has been attempting to strike a balance between the twin expectations.
