Oxford Official: China's Universities Make Progress, but Academic Freedom a Problem

(Beijing) – Chinese universities have made great strides in recent decades, but cannot match elite Western institutions without more academic freedom, the vice chancellor of the University of Oxford told Caixin at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

Andrew Hamilton, an organic chemist and former provost at Yale University, said that a willingness to be critical of established disciplines and social norms is the hallmark of elite Western universities, and must continue to be developed by Chinese institutions if they are to become global leaders.