Laws of the People's Republic of China

Some Opinions of the Ministry of Education concerning Further Intensifying the Absorption of Excellent People with Overseas Educational Background

Jiao Wai Liu [2007] No. 8

The education departments (commissions) of each province, autonomous region, and municipality directly under the Central Government, the education departments (commissions) of related institutions (entities), the related institutions of higher education, the related scientific and technological research institutions, the related entrepreneur parks for people with overseas educational background, the education offices of Chinese embassies or consulates stationed outside the territory of China:

For the purpose of implementing the "National Outlines for Medium- and Long-term Planning for Scientific and Technological Development (2006-2020)", accelerating the implementation of the strategy of invigorating the country through science, technology and education as well as the strategy of strengthening the power of the country by relying on talented people, make greater efforts to absorb excellent people with overseas educational background, improving technical innovations and the development of new disciplines in China, setting up a group of high-caliber talents that are able to adapt to the all-round, harmonious and sustainable development, several opinions with respect to further intensifying the absorption of excellent people with overseas educational background by institutions of higher education, scientific and technological research institutions and domestic employing units of entrepreneur parks for people with overseas educational background (shortened as "domestic employing units"), etc. are hereby put forward as follows:

I.

The definition of "excellent people with overseas educational background".

"Excellent people with overseas educational background" may include the three levels as follows:

The first level: A group of leading scholars in certain disciplines are needed in order to form a group of excellent innovation organizations.

The second level: A large group of excellent academic leaders with a solid academic basis as well as prominent innovation capabilities and development potentialities are needed in order to improve technical innovations and the development of certain disciplines.

The third level: A large quantity of young backbone teachers and scientific researchers are needed in order to uplift the overall caliber of the group of teachers and scientific researchers.

II.

Preparing a demands catalogue for excellent people with overseas educational background, as well as establishing and perfecting an information database of overseas excellent people with educational background.

According to the actual needs from the developments in education, science and technology, industry, region, etc., this Ministry shall establish a system of forecasting the demands for people with overseas educational background and promulgating the information about such demands, fully grasp the information concerning the demands of various domestic employing units for talents. We shall set up and perfect the information database on the demands of domestic employing units for excellent people with overseas educational background, develop national and local information databases of the policies and measures for attracting people with overseas educational background, as well as provide convenient, prompt, accurate and timely domestic services of inquiry and consulting of the information on demands for the excellent people with overseas educational background to come back to work in China.

On the basis of further enhancing and perfecting the construction of the information system of the education offices in Chinese embassies or consulates stationed outside the territory of China on the management to study-abroad scholars, we shall establish the information database of the excellent people with overseas educational background that intend to come back to work in China, intensify the management and services of the education offices in Chinese embassies or consulates stationed outside the territory of China to study-abroad scholars , find out, contact, and recommend the leading scholars of certain disciplines, academic leaders and academic backbones that are needed immediately in China.

Each employing unit within the territory of China may, make pertinent plans on the absorption of talents in light of the specialties and planning of the development of the disciplines concerned, and formulate management measures on the absorption of talents.

III.

To build up a two-way selection platform for excellent people with overseas educational background, and offer services for excellent people with overseas educational background to come back to China to engage in or to start up their entrepreneur careers.

This Ministry shall publish information concerning domestic demands for people with overseas educational background and information concerning excellent people with overseas educational background that intend to come back to work in China by various ways and forms, set up a two-way interaction platform for online communications and negotiations, etc., and impel the linkup of domestic employing units with the excellent people with overseas educational background and intend to come back to work in China:

1.

We shall establish an exclusive network information exchange platform and a long-distance video interview and negotiation system upon the information of the education offices of Chinese embassies or consulates stationed outside the territory of China, that on www.cscse.edu.cn, www.csc.edu.cn, and that of China Scholars Abroad, as well as other related institutions, We will regularly publish demand information, in order to provide services such as two-way interactive communications and recruitment negotiations, etc to both the excellent people with overseas educational background and the employing units.

2.

We will enhance the contacts with diverse academic organizations and associations of those studying outside the territory of China and strengthen the guidance to them, give full scope to the intermediary function of the organizations, and we will publish the information concerning demands for excellent overseas talents through the organizations of those studying outside the territory of China, and offer consulting and services for those studying outside the territory of China to come back to work in China.

3.

This Ministry will respectively organize the people studying outside the territory of China and domestic employing units to join in the High-level Overseas Talents Recruitment Fair of Beijing Scientific and Technological Expo, and the High-level Overseas Talents Recruitment Fair of Guangzhou Scientific and Technological Fair of Chinese People Studying Abroad in May and December annually, and to have face-to-face communications and mutual selections.

4.

We will organize the negotiation teams to absorb excellent people with overseas educational background upon the plan step by step, and organize domestic people in charge of personnel to communicate with talents in the countries and regions abounding with people with overseas educational background. We will organize excellent people studying outside the territory of China to hold communications with domestic employing units through the education offices, encourage and guide excellent people studying outside the territory of China to come back to China and work in higher education institutions, scientific and technological research institutions and other departments.

Domestic employing units may independently organize teams to go abroad to follow up and negotiate with certain excellent people with overseas educational background under the guidance of this Ministry, and implement the task of absorbing excellent people with overseas educational background.

IV.

Taking full advantage of national projects of science and technology, education and supports to talents to guide excellent overseas talents to come back to China to develop their own businesses.

1.

The higher education institutions on the list of "211 Project" or the list of "985 Project", and the scientific and technological research institutions under the "100 talented scientist plan" shall regard the task of attracting excellent people studying outside the territory of China to come back to work in China as an important part of the project construction, make planning on exclusive fund supports and finance them excellent people with overseas educational background to come back to work in China or to serve the home country in different ways.

2.

We shall further enhance the supports and encouragement for excellent study-abroad talents to come back to work in China through such programs as the "Cheung Kong Scholars Program" and "Program for New Century Excellent Talents in University", etc..

3.

We shall make greater efforts to perform the "Project on Absorption of Intellects by Institutions of Higher Education for Academic Disciplinary Innovations" (the "111 Project"), attract excellent people studying outside the territory of China by means of organization absorption, drive of core talents, etc., promote the disciplines development, and talent cultivation, and push the construction of high-level research-oriented universities.

4.

Greater efforts shall be made for "Chunhui Program" of the Ministry of Education to support excellent people with overseas educational background to come back to China and serve the home country for short terms. We shall encourage excellent people with overseas educational background to get financial supports under "Chunhui Program" and to come back to China and serve the home country for short terms, in order that some excellent people with overseas educational background will come back to work in China finally for long terms by way of cooperation and then soft landing.

We shall make good use of the "Chunhui Program" of the Ministry of Education to encourage excellent people with overseas educational background in key areas or some advanced academic disciplines to work on research or lectures in higher education institutions during their academic holidays in China, and to serve the construction of newly emerging academic disciplines and advanced academic disciplines within the territory of China, as well as the establishment of world-class universities.

5.

We shall make greater efforts to raise the financial support from the "Overseas Returned Scholars' Scientific Research Initiation Fund", to increase the scholars supported therefrom, and to shorten the appraisal period of the "Overseas Returned Scholars' Scientific Research Initiation Fund", in order to create conditions for excellent people studying abroad to carry out scientific research as quickly as possible after they come back, and to encourage excellent people with overseas educational background to settle down and develop in China.

Higher education institutions, scientific and technological research institutions and other entities shall set up scientific research start-up funds for those with overseas educational background accordingly.

V.

Establishing prompt avenues for people studying outside the territory of China to come back to work in China, and earnestly resolving the reservations of excellent people with overseas educational background in their entrepreneur careers in China.

We shall make greater efforts to improve the service functions of the education offices of Chinese embassies or consulates stationed outside the territory of China, and of the Ministry of Education's Overseas Education Service Center with respect to certification, management of personnel archives, certification of overseas education diplomas and degrees, and settling-down, etc., to intensify the service consciousness, and to improve the service efficiency.

Chinese education offices stationed outside the territory of China shall actively provide domestic employing units with information supports and services. When any domestic employing unit needs any assistance, contact or confirmation of related information for absorbing any person studying overseas, the education office concerned shall provide related information consulting in a timely manner.

This Ministry shall coordinate with the related department to offer convenient service to those studying outside the territory of China concerning entry into, exit from and permanent residence in China when they come back to work in China and serve the home country. We will simplify the procedures for examination and approval therefrom, and improve the service quality.

Active efforts shall be made to promote the establishment and implementation of specific measures on the enjoyment of national treatments by those with overseas educational background, to properly resolve the problems on the work conditions and close interests of the excellent people with overseas educational background with regard to housing, salary, household registration, medical treatment, social insurance, scientific research start-up, investment and establishment of enterprises, intellectual property protection, children's schooling, family members' employment, and to create a work environment and policy environment that may help the excellent people with overseas educational background their work or their serving the home country.

VI.

Intensifying the construction of entrepreneur parks for people with overseas educational background, scientific and technological parks of universities, entrepreneur bases and service institutions, and energetically implementing the "Chunhui Cup" innovation entrepreneur tournament of those Chinese scholars with overseas education experience.

We shall establish entrepreneur parks of scholars with overseas educational backgrounds, and a public entrepreneur service information network platform of scientific and technological parks of universities. We shall improve the functions of incubation and project management of the parks and bases, and broaden investment and financing avenues to create a good incubation environment for people that studied outside the territory of China to carry out their own businesses. We shall attract and gather a group of excellent people with overseas educational background, who grasp modern scientific and technological achievements, have independent intellectual properties, and meanwhile have modernized enterprise management knowledge and market-based operation capabilities, to better cooperate with domestic employing units by combination of production with research. We shall propel effective combination of foreign advanced technologies and management experiences with domestic resources, and encourage them to make contributions to the domestic employing units' teaching, scientific research and hi-tech industry development.

This Ministry and the Ministry of Science and Technology will regularly hold a "Chunhui Cup" innovation and business start-up tournament among those with overseas educational background, and establish an business startup platform with the involvement of overseas excellent people with educational background, entrepreneur parks for people with overseas educational backgrounds, scientific and technological parks of universities, and venture capital institutions. Upon the "Chunhui Cup" innovation and business startup contest among those with overseas educational backgrounds, we shall give full play to the enthusiasm of the excellent people studying outside the territory of China to come back to China and develop their own businesses, encourage them to actively submit applications for innovation and business startup projects, and create conditions to support the project linkup of the participants with the scientific and technological parks of universities, entrepreneur parks for people with overseas educational backgrounds, and enterprises, as well. We shall also organize entrepreneur parks for those studying outside the territory of China, scientific and technological parks of universities, venture capital institutions and domestic entrepreneurs to appraise the projects, negotiate on the projects and award the excellent ones on the basis of the project technical level, investment foreground, benefit forecast and industrialization situation, as well as promote people with overseas educational backgrounds to build up high technology enterprises.

The Ministry of Education

March 2, 2007