The modern university was born in Germany. In the 20th century, the United States leapfrogged Germany to become the global leader in higher education. Will China challenge its position in the 21st?
In his book Empires of Ideas, Harvard China scholar William Kirby details the rise to prominence of leading universities—the University of Berlin and the Free University of Berlin in Germany; Harvard, Duke and the University of California, Berkeley, in the United States—as well as their current challenges. He draws parallels with three of China’s top schools—Tsinghua University, Nanjing University and the University of Hong Kong—and examines their own obstacles. Moderated by FCC First Vice-President Jennifer Jett.
