Challenges and Opportunities for Global Health Education in China

20 December 2023

A commentary co-authored by three professors at DKU Global Health Research Center was published in December on the Lancet Regional Health – West Pacific, addressing the challenges and opportunities of global health education in Chinese universities.

“Over the past three decades, China has rapidly joined the global stage in almost every aspect of socio-economic development cooperation, continuously expanding its influence in global arena,” commented Shenglan Tang, the founding director of DKU Global Health Research Center at Duke Kunshan University. In terms of global health, China has played a pivotal role through deploying medical teams, constructing hospitals, donating drugs and equipment, and training healthcare professionals in numerous African and Asian countries, fostering international collaborations.

Besides, an increasing number of Chinese universities had initiated global health research and education projects. Starting with an initial 10 member universities in 2013, the Chinese Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CCUGH) has expanded to 31 member universities. Following the model of the Consortium of University for Global Health in North America, the CCUGH member universities have introduced distinctive undergraduate and graduate global health education programs, aligning with the evolving needs of the field.

For instance, Peking University, Fudan University, Tsinghua University, and Shanghai Jiao Tong University currently enroll postgraduate students in global health, with some programs receiving funding from the Ministry of Education as training initiatives for overseas students in China.

“Duke Kunshan University, as a Sino-U.S. joint venture institution, introduced the MSc Global Health program in 2014 and has been admitting undergraduate students since 2018. We focus on equipping students with practical skills and knowledge in global health. We offer scholarship to encourage students interning in the international organizations and provide research grants for fieldwork overseas,” explained Dr. Wu Chenkai, Director of the Master of Science in Global Health program at Duke Kunshan University.

The commentary also highlights that global health education in China has a relatively short history of only ten years and faces several challenges. These challenges include insufficient funding and resources for the long-term development of global health education, a limited pool of faculty with both expertise and hands-on experience in global health, and the need for more responsive curriculum addressing urgent global health challenges such as climate change and its health impact, and antimicrobial resistance.

Professor Liu Yunguo, co-director of the Global Health Research Center at Duke Kunshan University, emphasized that despite the challenges facing global health education in China, there are crucial opportunity window too.

He pointed out, “Utilizing the growing academic and international influence, China can establish cooperation with universities and organizations, especially in the developing countries. Additionally, enhancing global health education and research through interdisciplinary approaches, investing in research infrastructure, promoting innovation, and fostering collaboration with the private sector, as well as encouraging students to engage in global health fieldwork and international exchanges, can further enhance the impact of Chinese universities in the field of global health education.”