SHENZHEN has made it a key policy objective to help two local universities, namely Shenzhen University (SZU) and Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech), to achieve world-class status, according to a Shenzhen Special Zone Daily report.

The objective was spelt out in a document released by the Shenzhen Municipal Committee of the CPC recently.

According to the goals set out in the document, Shenzhen will build a higher education system that matches the development of the city and create a first-class modern vocational education system, which reflects Shenzhen’s determination and ambition to vigorously promote higher education and improve the quality of education.

As early as in 2015, the State Council expressly stated in its overall plan of boosting the construction of world-class universities and disciplines that it will build a batch of advantageous disciplines that are leaders in China and first-rate worldwide.

In September 2017, the list of “first-class” universities and disciplines was officially published, encompassing in the first round a total of 140 colleges and universities and 465 disciplines; however, no Shenzhen school was included.

It is reported that the second-round screening of such universities and disciplines is under way, and SZU and SUSTech have been regarded as powerful competitors among the candidates.

With its accelerated development pace, Shenzhen University has risen by 100 places annually in the world rankings, while up by 10 places annually in China over the most recent years. It has now become a comprehensive university featuring a complete range of subjects, distinguished characteristics and unique contributions.

As for SUSTech, its leapfrog development has attracted wide attention despite only being founded 10 years ago. According to Clarivate Analytics, the disciplines of chemical science, material science and engineering science of the school have been listed in the global top 1 percent of Essential Science Indicators (ESI), while in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings of 2020, SUSTech occupied eighth place among Chinese universities and third place in Asia; moreover, it has ranked first on the Chinese mainland for two years in a row in the Times Higher Education Young University Rankings.

The construction of Xili Lake International Science and Education City and the planning of an ocean university as per high standards are also part of the city’s long-term vision for higher education. (Tan Yaoquan)