安徽省教育厅

Overview

The Department of Education of Anhui Province (安徽省教育厅) is the provincial bureau-level education authority of the People’s Republic of China, based in Hefei. Established in 1949, it holds ultimate responsibility for planning, supervising, funding and reforming the education system of Anhui—from preschool to university level. According to uniRank, it is officially recognised as one of over 1,000 “higher-education‑related organisations and associations in China”, highlighting its central role in the province’s higher education ecosystem.

1. Historical and Legal Framework

The department was formally founded shortly after the People’s Republic of China was proclaimed in 1949. It derives its legal mandate from the national Education Law, the Higher Education Law and subsequent State Council regulations, together with local provincial legislation. Operating under the Anhui Provincial People’s Government and its Party Education Work Committee, the department drafts localized policies, supervises university establishment and admissions, manages teacher qualifications and enforces education legislation across Anhui.

2. Mission, Vision and Objectives – Role in Higher Education

Mission & Vision: The department aims to build a modern, equitable and high-quality higher education system to support Anhui’s economic transformation and social development goals. Anchored in national development strategies, its vision emphasizes educational excellence, innovation and accessibility.

Key objectives in higher education include:

• Implementing provincial development plans with the Ministry of Education and local governments;
• Overseeing establishment and programme approvals of provincial universities;
• Guiding reforms in faculty standards, academic disciplines and curriculum structure;
• Supporting integration of education with local industries, research institutes and innovation platforms;
• Promoting inclusive access for rural and disadvantaged students;
• Advancing digital teaching platforms and distance-learning pathways.

Role in higher education: The department’s Higher Education Division plans expansions and structural reforms, administers continuing and vocational education pathways, coordinates with national bodies on enrolment quotas and funds local quality improvement pilots in undergraduate colleges.

3. Governance, Structure and Independence

The department forms part of the Anhui Provincial Education Work Leadership Group under full Party leadership at provincial level. Its senior leadership, including the Minister and Deputy Ministers, are appointed by the Party and provincial administration—approved through provincial personnel departments.

Its organisational structure includes over 20 internal offices, including but not limited to:

• General Office
• Policy & Legal Affairs Department
• Higher Education Division
• Teaching Quality & Supervision Office
• Academic Degree Committee Secretariat
• International Cooperation Office
• Student Affairs Division (managing employment, enrolment, academic records)
• Vocational & Adult Education Department
• Finance, Talent and Language Promotion Units

The department oversees municipal and county-level education bureaus, but is not independent in the NGO sense. It implements centrally issued policy while retaining discretion in provincial adaptations, especially for specialised higher education pilots and industry-university collaborations.

4. Accreditation and Quality Evaluation Role in Higher Education

The department does not hold national accreditation powers—that authority is vested in the Ministry of Education and authorised national accreditation agencies. However, it holds key provincial responsibilities:

• It manages the Anhui Provincial Academic Degrees Committee, organizing approval and periodic review of degree-awarding rights at bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral level;
• It conducts regular provincial teaching-quality evaluations and campus inspections, including classroom audits, curriculum compliance checks and infrastructure reviews;
• It leads provincial “Quality Engineering” programmes that support first-class undergraduate courses, ideological-politics curriculum innovation and educational equipment development.

Through these mechanisms, the department helps shape local academic standards and institutional performance, though full accreditation is determined at the national level.

5. International Cooperation and Network Memberships

The department plays a central role in overseeing internationalisation across Anhui higher education:

• It approves Sino‑foreign cooperative education institutions and dual-degree programmes, ensuring compliance with central government approvals;
• It administers Anhui’s Government Scholarship for inbound overseas students and supervises foreign faculty registrations;
• It coordinates official delegations and exchange programmes, including recent exchanges with ASEAN-region universities;
• It implements cross-border research and curriculum partnerships under frameworks like UNESCO learning-city initiatives or Belt-and-Road educational cooperation;
• It works with national agencies such as the China Education Association for International Exchange to support collaboration projects in research, scholar mobility and pedagogy development.

6. Current or Future Impact on Higher Education

The department is actively implementing Anhui’s “教育强省建设规划（2024‑2035年）”, issued in 2025 to align with the national Education Modernization 2035 framework:

• Reinforcing university classification—research‑oriented, application‑oriented and vocational/specialist institutions—to serve provincial innovation and industry clusters;
• Encouraging growth of “Double First‑Class” disciplines, especially at top institutions like China University of Science & Technology, Anhui University and Hefei Institutes of Technology;
• Accelerating STEM and interdisciplinary programmes with a focus on smart manufacturing, environmental engineering, AI and life sciences;
• Strengthening vocational‑higher education integration (e.g. “3+2” pathways, modern industry colleges);
• Expanding digital infrastructure (“智慧徽教” cloud platforms), online training modules and AI‑assisted learning across the higher education system;
• Monitoring graduate employment, research outputs and faculty quality via newly revamped provincial evaluation and data reporting systems.

These efforts aim to raise Anhui’s universities toward national and international competitiveness, deepen impact in regional innovation ecosystems and broaden access through tertiary reform.

7. Summary

The Department of Education of Anhui Province is the bureau‑level authority implementing central and provincial education policy across Anhui. Established in 1949 and upholding the Party’s leadership and legal responsibilities, it manages higher education planning, degree-awarding approval, quality supervision and international cooperation. While not a national accreditor, it exercises substantial influence through teaching quality inspections, provincial degree management and innovation programmes. Its modernisation agenda (2024‑2035) positions Anhui’s higher education system for greater innovation capacity, equity and alignment with provincial development goals.

8. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the Department of Education of Anhui Province?
   It is the provincial government agency in Anhui, overseeing all levels of education including higher education, vocational training and continuing education under provincial government and Party leadership.
2. How is the department related to China’s Ministry of Education?
   It operates under the Anhui provincial government, not the Ministry directly. However, it implements national policies and collaborates with central authorities on university approvals, enrolment plans and evaluation procedures.
3. What role does the department play in higher education?
   It plans university development, approves new programmes and institutions within Anhui, oversees provincial degree-awarding rights and implements local quality assurance and educational innovation initiatives.
4. Can Anhui’s Department of Education accredit universities?
   No. Accreditation is handled by the Ministry of Education and national-level agencies. The department supports accreditation processes through inspections, resource oversight and provincial-level licensing mechanisms.
5. How does it engage in international education?
   The department approves and regulates Sino‑foreign joint programmes, manages international student scholarships and foreign faculty registrations and coordinates province-wide exchanges and partnerships.
6. How is the department structured?
   It comprises more than 20 internal departments—such as higher education, policy, finance, international cooperation—plus a Secretariat supporting the provincial Party Education Work Group. It reports to both Party and government bodies.
7. How does uniRank describe the department?
   According to uniRank, the Department of Education of Anhui Province is a recognised “higher‑education‑related organisation”, underscoring its governance and regulatory function within Anhui’s higher education system.

Organization Name

安徽省教育厅

Department of Education of the Anhui Province

Acronym

Year of Establishment

1949

Control Type

Public

Entity Type

Non-Profit

Geo Focus and Coverage

Local or Regional

Recognized by

n.a.

Affiliations or Memberships

n.a.

Number of Member Universities or Accredited Institutions

n.a.

Address

321, Jinzhai Road
Hefei City
230061 Anhui Province China

Phone

+86 (551) 281 4453

Fax

n.a.

Official Social Media Channels

Facebook

Not available

X (Twitter)

Not available

LinkedIn

Not available

YouTube

Not available

Instagram

Not available

Wikipedia Article

Department of Education of the Anhui Province's Wikipedia article

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