(Yicai) June 11 -- A slew of well-funded research universities have opened in China since 2012, positioned to climb rapidly as top centers of higher learning by adopting world-class standards in management, faculty recruitment, and program offerings.

Their growing ranks include the likes of Fuyao University of Science and Technology in Fuzhou, Hangzhou’s Westlake University, Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, ShanghaiTech University, and Shenzhen Technology University.

A common characteristic of these universities is their high standards and strong financial backing. Fuyao University, founded by Cao Dewang with a USD10 billion donation, will benchmark its operational systems against Stanford University, enroll 50 students in its first year, and operate on a budget of CNY800 million (USD111 million), the auto glass magnate said in a recent media interview. The school will open its doors this fall.

Ample startup funding allows them to launch directly as research universities, quickly surpassing many established institutions and choosing unique educational models suited to their missions, Chu Zhaohui, a researcher at the China National Academy of Educational Sciences, told Yicai.

These new universities are also all located in China’s economically developed eastern coastal regions, where robust local economies and fiscal strength, alongside high demand for top talent, enable their founders to offer highly competitive compensation packages to staff, noted Ding Changfa, an associate professor in Xiamen University’s school of economics.

To boost teaching quality and research capabilities, these universities have hired a cohort of top-tier faculty, which requires substantial investment, Ding said. As a result, their programs tend to focus on cutting-edge, applied science disciplines that address an urgent market need for talent.

For example, the first faculties at Shenzhen Technology University -- such as those for life and health sciences, synthetic biology, computer science and control engineering, materials science and engineering, and pharmaceutical sciences -- reflect emerging technological and societal trends.

These universities often rival or even surpass more established peers for program offerings. Westlake University, for instance, provides a full academic pathway from undergraduate to PhD and allows students to participate in international exchanges during their junior year -- an attractive feature compared with many traditional institutions.

Admissions are increasingly competitive. SUSTech, established by the Shenzhen government in 2010, admitted freshmen into its physics program last year with the same minimum score on the national college entrance exam as Sun Yat-sen University, one of the most prestigious in Guangdong province, Yicai learned.

Philanthropy has played a key role in the creation of some of these academic institutions. Besides Cao’s endowment to Fuyao University, Westlake University was set up with donations from more than 10 renowned entrepreneurs in 2018.

Beyond private initiatives, government is also playing a role. Last year, China’s Ministry of Education approved the upgrade of the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology into a full-fledged university -- now known as the Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology. Similarly, Shanghai’s government partnered with the Chinese Academy of Sciences to form ShanghaiTech University.

The founders of Fuyao University and Westlake University did not establish them for financial gain but to cultivate talent for the country and give back to society, according to Wang Yitao, director of Soochow University’s research center for private education. So from the outset, their faculty recruitment, management, and research environments have been set to world-class standards, Wang pointed out.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine