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Introduction

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The Road to Privatization of Higher Education in China

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Abstract

When, in 1979, then Communist Party leader Deng Xiaoping asked “why can’t a socialist country have a market economy?” (Deng 1979), the policy response to the question would set into motion a series of unprecedented changes which would remake China not only in terms of its higher education (HE) system but its entire society as well. Since then China has embarked on an ambitious privatization process. Indeed, more widely the impact of privatization has been observed in both the so-called developed and developing countries. The public sector has been streamlined with neoliberal ideas in the hope of enhancing efficiency and accountability, while simultaneously the philosophy of public service has changed. Both the retreat of the welfare state in Europe and the restructuring of transitional economies have left gaps for markets to fill. In order to fully utilize market tools and mobilize private resources, a number of neoliberal strategies have been adopted in the public sector, including in the HE sector. Many studies examine these governance changes in the context of education and observe converging practices of neoliberal reforms in education against a globalized context (e.g., Currie 1998; Eggins 2003; Mok 2005a, b). This study builds on this literature while capturing the Chinese features of privatization in HE.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    In Chinese: 独立学院.

  2. 2.

    In Chinese: 国有民办.

  3. 3.

    In Chinese: 转制.

  4. 4.

    In Chinese: 政绩.

  5. 5.

    In Chinese: 京派.

  6. 6.

    In Chinese: 海派.

  7. 7.

    In Chinese: 岭南.

  8. 8.

    In Chinese: 民办.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Education Policy and Leadership, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China, People’s Republic

    Li Wang

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  1. Li Wang
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Wang, L. (2014). Introduction. In: The Road to Privatization of Higher Education in China. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-38303-8_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-38303-8_1

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