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Learning, Knowledge Transfer, and Institutional Innovation: The Impact of Academic Mobility

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Globalization and Transnational Academic Mobility

Part of the book series: East-West Crosscurrents in Higher Education ((EWCHE))

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the opportunities the returnees have and their agencies of bringing about change as they negotiate with the structural constraints. It demonstrates the various ways in which the returnees act as active social actors as they participate in the process of development and internationalization of higher education in China. It argues that the returnees are not passively adapting to the existing university rules and structures. Instead, they are strategically drawing upon and using part of their transnational gains and advantages to create a new space for their professional careers and China’s higher education innovation.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    For details, see Rao et al. (2004). Zhongguo keji xuyao de genben zhuanbian: Cong chuantong renzhi dao jingzheng yousheng tizhi—zhong changqi guihua jiang liuxia youxiu yichan, haishi cuoshi liangji [A fundamental transition from rule-by-man to rule-by-merit: What will be the legacy of the mid-to-long term plan of science and technology?]. Nature, Vol. 432, China Voices II, pp. A12–A17.

  2. 2.

    For details, see Gong (2009, October 14). Man on a mission. China Daily. Retrieved from http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2009-10/14/content_8789826.htm.

  3. 3.

    Project 985 universities are highly selective with admission rates less than 2 % across the country (Ministry of Education of China, 2012).

  4. 4.

    Special economic zones were created after Deng Xiaoping’s economic reforms in 1980, which include the costal cities such as Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Shantou, and Xiamen. The special zones are areas that enjoy special economic policies and flexible governmental measures. The policies include special tax incentives for foreign investments, greater independence on international trade activities, and more autonomy from national planning. These new policies allow the special economic zones to utilize a new economic system that is more attractive to doing business than in the rest parts of the Chinese Mainland.

  5. 5.

    The China Scholarship Council (CSC) launched the State-Sponsored Graduate Scholarship Program for Building High-Level Universities in 2007. This program, with funds from the central government, aims to send excellent students to study in world-class universities either through joint PhD programs or regular PhD programs (Li and Chen 2011).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China

    Qiongqiong Chen

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  1. Qiongqiong Chen
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Correspondence to Qiongqiong Chen .

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Chen, Q. (2017). Learning, Knowledge Transfer, and Institutional Innovation: The Impact of Academic Mobility. In: Globalization and Transnational Academic Mobility. East-West Crosscurrents in Higher Education. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-886-1_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-886-1_6

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-287-884-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-287-886-1

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