Introduction to China Market Insights, China TVET

Welcome to the first monthly market insight for opportunities working with China TVET

This monthly market insight is designed to offer UK FE colleges, information about the opportunities, challenges and processes when considering international engagement with Chinese colleagues.

For any UK FE college wanting to develop relations with Chinese colleagues, it is important to consider what both sides are looking to achieve, and the incremental steps that are required to develop a system of 120,000 state vocational colleges to international standards. Caution and patience are the key for both sides. It can take on average 12-18 months to create a partnership with Chinese colleges, and once the first project is successful, the market will quickly be ready for scalability.

The UK has a unique system in general and vocational education with the use of a third-party certification process where the delivering institution is not the awarding institution (those qualifications offered outside of the university accreditation system). Internal and external assessment processes are effectively controlled by a third party. The system is for the large part effective in that it has the benefit of increasing the quality of delivery as well as the quality of the outcomes. It can, however, appear to those using a more simplistic process, complicated. Germany, USA, Australia and Canada have all had success in Vocational Cooperation in China, due to the compatible systems. These countries use the internal awarding system where the college also acts as the main certification body.

Colleges in China are guided by Ministry and Education guidelines as to parameters and overall strategic direction at national level, and the Provincial bureaus will integrate national strategic direction into more regionalised and local agendas.  The colleges will always seek their local bureaus guidance for engagement with foreign institutes, so understanding the local and regional processes is important in reducing delay in the market entry ROI timeline.

The following are some excerpts from a recent regional review conducted for Shanghai’s Level 5 (Dazhuan) Vocational development:

“Based on the needs of skill development in Shanghai, government functional departments will take advantage of role and proceed whilst maintaining Chinese and localised characteristics of regional development of higher vocational colleges (HVC) in Shanghai. Colleges will optimize the professional structure and establish new mechanisms and platforms for international cooperation in HVCs. A sound evaluation and elimination process should be adopted based on scientific and constructive behaviour guidance. At the same time, professional consulting and service agencies can also be set up to actively help broaden cooperation channels to introduce high-quality foreign resources, and actively help promote and develop employer engagement and exchanges among HVCs. All higher vocational colleges should focus on advanced manufacturing, modern service industry, etc., according to their own disciplinary advantages and characteristics, and effectively introduce high-quality overseas vocational education resources.”  

There is a significant market and appetite in China currently for supporting L3-5 development. With UK FE sector help, our Chinese colleague will be able to develop their system and not be reliant on other countries colleges to assess and issue the diploma. Incubating the UK system in China will enable self-sustainability, by introducing internal and external assessment, ongoing CPD for Teachers and next practice methodologies that can be recognised globally.

It is clear, that with a well-documented development programme in Chinese Vocational sector it is just the place that with a world leading vocational education system we should be looking to engage. Indeed, there is a lot of development going on in this market, and Chinese Colleges are reaching out to learn from the best in the world. We at the CUK TVET Alliance are well place to offer a conduit for those UK FE colleges wishing to engage, to do just that.

Who are the CUK TVET Alliance?

CUKTVET is a not-for-profit UK based organisation with 13 Information offices across China and a fulltime presence, supporting Chinese HVCs understanding of UKs unique vocational education sector. The organisation supports sustainable and mutually beneficial partnerships between UK and China in the vocational education sector.

For students, CUKTVET supports social mobility through proactive development of high skill-based qualifications that have positive impact on regional economies.  Students can choose to study in their hometown in China, and achieve internationally recognised skill diplomas, and all students will have the opportunity to continue their higher education at a leading UK University.  The programme will focus on links between UK and China in Real Estate and Construction skills, Business and Accounting, Big data, IT, Engineering, Social Care and Nursing, Agriculture and Land Management, Animal management, Creative Skills and more.