1. Case Study: Partnership Opportunities in China
Emma Whitehead, Skills Adviser, China, British Council

2. Current opportunities: Foundation Partnership
Guangdong Dongguan Technician College
“We hope that, by learning from UK experiences in vocational education, Dongguan
Technician College will deepen reform on its education and teaching, innovate its talent
cultivation model, improve its teaching quality (particularly in connection with skill
building), introduce UK qualifications/ joint programme delivery and ultimately, in order to
improve the employability of its graduates.”
The college has 36 specialities for 18 – 21 year olds
2 Travel grants available of £3K
Deadline for Travel Grant applications: 19th
July 2013
For a scoping visit 23rd
– 27th
September
Deadline for Partnership Proposal: 31st
October 2013
Start of Partnership: December 2013
£15,000 is available to contribute to delivery of the successful project proposal.
For more information and to apply, see “Partnership Calls” on the website

3. Current opportunities: Start-up
• Exploratory travel grants:
– £3K available to visit Chinese Colleges
– Criteria: EITHER a visit from the Chinese College has
already occurred, OR there is already a specific focus
– These grants are not available to colleges who have
already visited a Chinese college as part of the
Principal’s Shadowing Programme
Deadlines for applications: Monthly
• Start-up opportunities:
– 10K of match funding for each partnership
– Proposals should be developed in partnership based
on the priorities below
Application Rounds:
1: 1 July - 30 September
2: 1 October - 30 December
For more information, see ‘Start-up Scheme’ on the website

4. China: Introduction
In China there are:
•55 million workers with specialised skills (2011)
•13,093 secondary vocational colleges (ages 16-19) with 22
million students – c. half of all students at this level
•1,288 tertiary vocational colleges (ages 18-21) with 9.6
million students
•12,900 job training schemes, with 49
million students

5. In China’s 12th
Five-Year Plan (2011 – 2015), Education is placed at the
heart of development and reform policy.
In the National People’s Congress work report on Education in March
2010, strengthening vocational education was identified as a key
area of focus.
(along with improving the perception and pay of teachers)
This is to address a predicted skills gap:
-Demand for highly-skilled workers with vocational qualifications is
expected to exceed supply by c. 16 million workers in 2020
-This is due to both a geographical and a structural mismatch
China: Introduction

6. China Priorities
• Strengthen TVET
– Quality of teaching and learning
– Student centred learning
– National Centres of Excellence:
leadership, professional
development, quality assurance etc.
• Expansion of TVET
– Rural areas
– Attract more students
– Prestige
• Employer Engagement
– Competency based standards
– Led by industry associations
– Engaging private enterprises
– Joint solutions to meet employers’
needs for high-skills workers

8. Existing / previous partnerships
• 8 partnerships under the MoHRSS
• 4 partnerships under the MoE
• The following themes have emerged:
– Curriculum development
– Employer-centred partnership
– World Skills Competition collaboration
– Joint product development
– Apprenticeships
– Quality Assurance
– Teacher training and student exchanges
Most commonly
requested sectors:
•Automotive
•Mechanical
Engineering
•Creative Industry
(fashion design,
animation )
•Information
Technology
•E-commerce
•Hospitality

9. Benefits of previous partnerships
“Working with the British Council in China on the Skills for Employability
programme has given Walsall College a unique opportunity to work with
one of the largest employers in the sector, as well as a forward thinking
vocational educational institute that is a centre of excellence.”
Jatinder Sharma, Principal, Walsall College
“Yancheng College seems particularly excited about
the emphasis on creative learning in the UK and the
focus on the individual learner rather than on the
group. Another difference is that in the UK we teach
our young people the broader set of skills for
employability and self-directed learning – not just
technical skills. My students could…learn from
Yancheng’s disciplined approach to learning, the
behaviours of its students and their thirst for
knowledge”
Marion Plant, OBE, Principal and Chief Executive of North Warwickshire and
Hinckley College

10. Outcomes of previous partnerships
• Chengdu Technician College have started the process of
establishing an apprenticeship programme after sending
teachers to train to become apprenticeship trainers and
assessors at Clydebank College, focussing on Electrical
Engineering
• Guangzhou Communication & Transport Vocational School
introduced new automotive courses and qualifications after
teachers undertook training with IMI Awards through their
partnership with Central College Nottingham.
• Guangzhou GZITTC have been working closely together with
Highbury College to develop new curriculum and raise the
profile of skills, using World Skills competitions as a focus.

11. British Council support
China Support:
•Facilitating communication and
accompanying visits
•Providing expertise and advice on the
local context
•Facilitating networking and mentoring
•Recognising and sharing achievement
UK Support:
•Facilitating networking and mentoring
•Monitoring and Evaluation

12. Next Steps
Register interest in partnerships with China:
-Foundation partnership opportunity
-Exploratory travel grant
-Start-up opportunities
Inform us of existing relationships with Chinese colleges, or existing
areas of focus
For more information about our college partnerships,
please contact Miranda Swanson in the first instance:
Miranda.Swanson@britishcouncil.org
Miranda will direct you to Ron Pan to provide advice on
the China context

13. Case Study: Partnership Opportunities in Vietnam

14. Vietnam: introduction
Key priorities: TVET Strategy
“Development of TVET is the cause and the responsibility of whole
society”
The Government is committed to:
“Carry out fundamental and drastic reform of state management of
vocational training, in order to create momentum for promoting
vocational training toward standardization, modernization, socialization,
democratization and international integration.”
And to:
“Strengthen international cooperation in vocational training”

15. Current opportunities: Foundation Partnership
Hanoi Vocational College for High Technology
18 – 23 year olds
5 faculties: Electricity, Mechanics, Electronics, IT and Economics
A partnership focussed on:
• Strengthening international cooperation
• Training for teaching staff to achieve UK national standards
• Transfer of curricula from the UK
• UK colleges recognise the qualifications provided by Hanoi College
for High Technology
Call to be announced soon. Please see the “Partnership Calls” on the
website for more details.