The Ministry of Education (MOE) recently announced the 2024 accreditation and approval results for undergraduate programs offered by regular higher education institutions (HEIs) nationwide. A total of 1,839 new programs were approved; the degree-granting category or length of study of 157 programs was adjusted; 2,220 programs suspended enrollment for various reasons; and 1,428 programs were officially cancelled.

The MOE simultaneously released the latest version of the Undergraduate Program Catalogue for Regular HEIs, comprising 93 program categories and 845 specific programs. Among these specific programs, 29 were newly introduced and fall into four categories:

1) Programs impacting national strategy, such as area and country studies, carbon neutrality science and engineering, marine science and technology, and health and healthcare security;

2) Programs related to emerging advanced technologies such as intelligent molecular engineering, medical device engineering, and spatiotemporal information engineering;

3) Programs responding to new market needs such as international cruise management and air sports;

4) Programs focusing on AI applications such as AI education, intelligent audio-visual engineering, and digital drama.

The MOE also launched a rapid approval mechanism for programs urgently needed to support the Central Government’s national development plan. For example, under the ministry’s guidance, low-altitude technology and engineering programs were newly introduced in six HEIs, including Beihang University, to support rapid development of the low-altitude economy.

There are currently a total of 62,800 undergraduate programs in China. The MOE will provide guidance for HEIs to optimize existing programs and encourage them to conduct talent demand forecasting, in order to better align program design with market needs.