The Interim Measures Governing Colleges and universities Engaged in Overseas Education have been adopted at the ministerial meeting on March 29, 2002, and are hereby promulgated and shall be implemented as of February 1, 2003.

Chen Zhili

Minister of Education

31 December2002

Interim Measures for the Administration of Colleges and Universities Engaged in Overseas Education

Article 1 The present measures are formulated to promote foreign exchange and cooperation in the sphere of Chinese education and regulate colleges and universities’ activities of running schools abroad.

Article 2 In the present measures, “colleges and universities engaged in overseas education” refers to the colleges and universities that establish, independently or jointly with the educational institutions and other social organisations that have the status of a legal person and are acknowledged by the government of the country (region) where they are located, educational institutions abroad mainly for recruiting overseas citizens as students, or adopt other forms to engage in educational institution and teaching activities, to engage in diploma education, degree education and non-diploma higher education.

Article 3 The colleges and universities engaged in overseas education shall adhere to the policies of exploring actively, progressing steadily, and acting according to their abilities, ensuring the quality, proper management, and running of schools in accordance with the law.

Article 4 The colleges and universities shall be engaged in overseas education in conformity with relevant provisions of China, shall abide by the law and regulations of the country (region) where they are located, shall obtain relevant legal qualifications and shall undertake relevant legal liabilities by themselves.

Article 5 The colleges and universities engaged in overseas education shall first establish the preponderant or distinctive subjects of studies in the sphere of Chinese higher education and take full account of the needs and the development features of the country (region) where they are located. The state encourages colleges and universities to run schools abroad in a wider range of disciplinary fields.

Where colleges and universities engaged in overseas education confer Chinese diplomas and degrees, the establishment of specialties and schooling system shall be in conformity with relevant provisions of China, ensuring the quality and the high standing credit of Chinese higher education.

Article 6 Where a university or college is engaged in undergraduate degree education or on a higher level, it shall file an application to the Ministry of Education for examination and approval by the people’s government or the administrative department of education of the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government according to the relationship of subordination. The Ministry of Education shall make a decision of approval or disapproval within 30 days as of the acceptance of such an application.

Article 7 Where a university or college is engaged in professional training and non-diploma higher education, it shall file an application to the people’s government of the province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government or the administrative department of education in charge for examination and approval. A decision of approval or disapproval shall be made within 30 days of the acceptance of an application. Within 15 days of the approval, the examining and approving organs shall report the approved documents to the Ministry of Education for archival purposes.

Article 8 In order to be engaged in educational activities abroad, a university or college shall submit the following materials:

(1) An application. An application shall include: the purposes, form of cooperation, conditions, length of schooling, measures for the conferment of degrees, forecast of teacher and student sources, financial and operational forecast, basic introduction to the foreign partner and statements of whether it is in conformity with relevant provisions of the country (region) where it is located.

(2) Teaching plans, aims and models for the training of talents, curriculum design and other basic documents related to teaching.

(3) The foreign partner’s legal qualifications for running schools and its credit certificate.

(4) A cooperative agreement signed by Chinese and foreign co-operators. The agreement shall include the following elements:

Institution name and nature, curriculum, admission requirements, sources of teachers and textbooks, cooperative duration, all parties’ rights and interests, the conferment of degrees, managerial methods, financial arrangements, methods for solving disputes and measures of liquidation etc.

A cooperation agreement shall not be implemented until the application for running schools has been approved.

(5) To apply for independently establishing an educational institution, the applicant shall submit the articles of association, which shall have the following specifications:

Name and address of the institution, doctrine, scale, forecast of student sources, specialties design, teaching forms, interior managerial system, funding sources, financial and operational forecasts, system of property and financial management, the rights and obligations between the sponsor and the educational institution, procedures for modifying the articles of association and other items that must be specified in the articles of association.

Article 9 The colleges and universities engaged in overseas education may, either independently or by way of the Sino-foreign joint educational institution, confer certificates for schooling in accordance with pertinent regulations.

Those that are approved to engage in higher diploma education or degree education may, in accordance with relevant regulations, confer corresponding diplomas of China. Where degrees are to be jointly conferred by the Chinese party and its foreign partner, or to be conferred by the Chinese party only, the regulations governing Chinese degrees shall be observed.

Those that have been approved to engage in non-diploma higher education may, ipso facto, confer realistic certificates.

Article 10 The Ministry of Education, the people’s governments of the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government or the administrative organs of education in charge of colleges and universities shall, according to each authority of examination and approval, be responsible for guiding, supervising and managing the activities of the colleges and universities that run schools overseas.

Article 11 The present measures shall apply where colleges and universities run schools in Hong Kong and Macao.

With regard to colleges or universities that run schools in Taiwan, separate measures shall be formulated.

The present measures shall not be applicable to activities of colleges and universities in assigning teachers to educational institutions overseas to give lectures through school exchange project or other methods.

Article 12 The present Measures shall be effective as of 1 February 2003.