Yale president: Chinese universities need cutting-edge faculty

Chinese universities need faculty members who are at the frontier of research in their academic fields, President of Yale University Richard Levin said here Wednesday.

Levin is leading a 100-strong delegation of Yale University students and faculty to China from May 15 to 25 at the invitation of Chinese President Hu Jintao.

China, hoping to have world-class universities within 20 years, has made great progress in recent years in strengthening its top universities by building first-class facilities, top research labs and high-standard classrooms and dormitories, Levin said in a joint interview with Chinese media.

"The key ingredients for a world-class university are top students and top faculty," he said.

"I don't think there is any doubt that China's top universities today have students that are as good as those in universities anywhere. What is needed now are faculty members who are at the very frontier of research in their fields," he said.

Levin said Chinese universities had begun to recruit well-established scholars and scientists from around the world and a large number of top Chinese students study abroad, so "it's only a matter of time before China's top universities (are) ranked among the top universities in the world."

Chinese college graduates are facing a fiercely competitive employment market due to the expansion of college enrollment since 1999. When asked to comment on this problem, Levin said "the employment problem will be short-term."

He said there is growing demand for skilled graduates in China as its economy keeps booming and the slowdown of the enrollment growth rate will help to ease employment tensions.

The Yale University delegation will visit Beijing University and Tsinghua University in Beijing, Fudan University in Shanghai and Xi'an Jiaotong University in Xi'an, Shanxi Province. They will meet Chinese students, scholars, and government officials, tour major cultural and historical sites in Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai.

China and Yale University have links dating back 150 years as Yale is the alma mater of Yung Wing, the first Chinese student sent to the United States to receive a college education in 1854.

Many historic figures of late 19th century and early 20th century China were educated at Yale, including Zhan Tianyou, the father of China's railways who was appointed the government's chief railway engineer on his return.

"This is a historic visit for us and I am looking forward to meeting different government officials and academic leaders... It's going to be a wonderful trip," Levin said.

Source: Xinhua