First International Conference on World Class Universities

(WCU-1)
June 16-18, 2005


Purposes of WCU-1
 
Higher education has become so international that universities have to be compared with the rest of the world. Many universities claim to be "World Class", more universities setup their goals as "World Class", a number of national governments are taking measures to establish world class universities. However, what are the definition and characteristics of "World Class University"? How many world class universities should there be? How could universities be evaluated and compared in an international scope? What measures should be taken in order to establish world class universities?

University ranking is becoming popular in major countries and internationalization of university ranking is inevitable. The publication of "Academic Ranking of World Universities" (http://ed.sjtu.edu.cn/ranking.htm) by the Institute of Higher Education of Shanghai Jiao Tong University and "World University Ranking" by the Times Higher Education Supplement have captured world attentions. Whether or not rankings are a desirable practice, there is an increasing understanding that they are here to stay. The issue then becomes how world university rankings might be improved to benefit global higher education systems through sustainable competition?

Therefore the purposes of WCU-1 include:
¡ñ Provide innovative research on the rapidly growing phenomenon of world class universities.
¡ñ Contribute to the improvement of international comparison and global ranking of universities, and ultimately to the quality of global higher education.
¡ñ Discuss about future meetings on world class universities and the possibility of establishing an association on world class universities.

Proposed Topics of WCU-1
 
¡ñ
 The definition and characteristics of world class universities.
¡ñ
 The evaluation criteria and comparable indicators for world class universities.
¡ñ
 The methodologies and problems of world university rankings.
¡ñ
 The impact of world ranking on institutional management and public policy.
¡ñ
 The measures necessary for establishing world class universities.
¡ñ
 The challenges of building world class universities in developing countries.

Time and Venue of WCU-1
 
Time: June 16-18, 2005. Meeting sessions will begin on June 17, 2005.

Venue: WCU-1 will be held at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
Language of WCU-1
 
The language of WCU-1 is English.
Participation
 
Participation will be by invitation only. A small number of scholars on international higher education and university evaluation, experts on scientometrics and infometrics, presidents of world-known universities, and representatives of interested organizations are invited.
Accommodation
 
Participants will be accommodated at the Faculty Club of Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Contacts
 
Professor Nian Cai LIU
Institute of Higher Education
Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Shanghai, China
E-mail: ncliu@sjtu.edu.cn