The Beginning
New York University Shanghai (NYU Shanghai) is the first name that many people pop up when they search for “studying American University in Shanghai” and “Sino US Joint University”. What kind of school is it? Is it worth it for foreigners to study there, teach there, and even bring their families to live in Shanghai? This article combines the official introduction, the perspective of the students and the field data to help you understand the campus of “neither a pure Chinese University nor a New York University campus”.
Core Identity: The First Joint University Of Independent Legal Person Between China And The United States
When the regulations on Chinese foreign cooperation in running schools were just implemented in 2,002, no one expected that in ten years, an independent Sino-US Joint University with legal personality would be born. In 2,012, the Ministry of Education officially replied that New York University Shanghai became the first Sino-US Joint University with independent campuses, independent enrollment codes and independent degree granting rights (Ministry of Education, 2,012). In other words, it is neither the “offshore program” of NYU nor the “level two college” of East China Normal University. At the same time, two lines of words “New York University” and “New York University Shanghai” were printed on the diploma, and the three degrees in the world were awarded to campuses (New York, Abu Dhabi, Shanghai) with equivalent certification.
What Does Independent Legal Person Mean?
The independent legal personality allows New York University Shanghai to:
- establish the admission standard independently, without the unified enrollment of college entrance examination;
- employ foreign teachers themselves, accounting for more than 60% of the total number of teachers;
- The NYU degree is awarded directly, without the need for a “double degree” or “joint seal”.
For foreign teachers who want to work in China and at the same time want to keep the American academic path, this is the most attractive one – visas, social security, and professional titles are all in accordance with the “Chinese universities” process, but fully follow the tenure evaluation system of New York University (NYU Shanghai, 2,023).
Enrollment Portrait: “Mini UN” From 70 Countries
Among the 2,022 undergraduate classes, international students accounted for 49%, from 70 countries; 51% of Chinese students, covering 26 provinces and cities across the country (NYU Shanghai Fact Sheet, 2,023). According to the public data of the Admissions office, the most frequently mentioned reason for foreign students to choose a school is “want to live in China, but don’t want to sacrifice the English teaching environment.”. In other words, they regard New York University Shanghai as the two solutions of “experience in China + American degree”.
All English Teaching Is Not As Simple As TOEFL Exemption
Many people mistakenly believe that “all English = free language”. In fact, international students still need to submit IELTS / TOEFL / multi neighbor scores, but the evaluation weight has been lowered – the school pays more attention to multiple backgrounds and “global vision” potential. A 2,025 student from Mexico shared: “I wrote down my experience of doing street art projects in Shanghai, which moved the admissions officers more than my GRE scores. ”
This orientation of “story > score” is in sharp contrast to the traditional Chinese famous school of “score first”, which also makes many foreign applicants tired of standardized examinations shine.
Classroom Experience: 12 Discussion Vs. 200 Lectures
At New York University Shanghai, 94% of the undergraduate classroom population is less than 25 (NYU Shanghai Institutional Report, 2,022). Core Curriculum adopts the “12 person seminar” mode, and the professor will split the reading materials into role play scripts in advance.
Take a real case: Course: Global Perspectives on Society Theme: Foucault’s discipline theory Task: split the class into three groups: “warden”, “prisoner” and “Observer”, debate in groups with Zoom, and then paste the conclusions on the Miro collaboration whiteboard.
This “forced speech” design makes international students who are used to American discussion classes feel like fish in water, and also makes some shy Chinese students quickly cross the threshold of “dare not speak”.
Pudong Campus: 5 Minutes To The Subway, 15 Minutes To Lujiazui
The campus is located on the waterfront in Pudong, the whole land was allocated by the Shanghai municipal government, with a floor area of 57,000 square meters. Construction started in 2,014 and was fully put into use in 2,019. Key figures:
- It is 350 meters away from the transfer station of line 6, 8 and 11 “East Sports Center”;
- Ride 10 minutes to the greenway on the East Bank of Huangpu River;
- The 24 hour library and 400 black box theater are open to the public by appointment throughout the year.
The most favorite convenience of foreign teachers is that “the Shanghai subway is cleaner than the New York subway”, and the school can apply for a residence permit for foreigners, without having to run out of the immigration hall.
Employment Outlook: Stay In China Or Return To The United States?
By the end of 2,022, 41% of international graduates remained in China for employment or postgraduate study, of which 55% entered the Chinese headquarters of foreign enterprises; 47% of them returned home, mainly to the top 30 graduate programs in the United States (NYU Shanghai Career Development Center, 2,023). There were byte jumps in the employer list, Disney China, JP Morgan, and UNDP Bangkok office.
The key lies in: the recruiter regards the New York University Shanghai students as a complex that “understands Chinese, understands the Chinese workplace, and has American critical thinking”, especially for positions that need the role of a bridge between China and the United States.
Application Prompt: Key Time Node
- October 15th of each year: Early Decision is closed;
- December 15th: the first round of Regular Decision materials is closed;
- January 15th: financial aid application deadline;
- At the end of March: the list was released in a unified way.
The school adopts the same scholarship system for international students and local students, with a quota covering 25% – 100% of the tuition fee. As long as the score is up to the standard, it can be continued for years.
Living In Shanghai: Cost, Language, Air Quality
According to the school’s calculations, the monthly budget of foreign students is 700 to 900 US dollars, covering accommodation, catering and local transportation, far lower than the average of 1,700 US dollars in the New York campus. The subway App has an English interface, and the delivery platform can be bound to an international credit card; The hospital opened the “International Department”, which can be treated in English. As for the haze? In the past five years, the annual average value of PM2.5 in Pudong has decreased from 56 μ g/m? To 32 μ g/m? (Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau, 2,023), which is lower than the value in Paris in the same period.
Future Prospects: From “Experimental Field” To “Model School”
In 2,022, the Ministry of Education proposed to “steadily promote the high-level education of Sino-foreign cooperative education,” and New York University Shanghai was listed as the first demonstration template (Ministry of Education of China, 2,022). It is planned that by 2,025, the undergraduate enrollment scale will increase from 1300 to 2,000, and the graduate program will expand to 45 (including 10 doctoral degree programs). In other words, now the application is in the window period, and the enrollment competition has not yet entered the “rattan school” level, but with the popularity expansion, it is only a matter of time before the score line rises.
Conclusion
Put learning in the global coordinate system, and put life in the pulse of China, which is exactly the new path provided by New York University Shanghai to foreigners. If you are looking for a university that can not only maintain American teaching, but also deeply experience China – the answer has been written on the outer wall of the streamline teaching building in the front beach of Pudong: NYU Shanghai.
References
- Ministry of Education of China. (2,012). Approval for the Establishment of NYU Shanghai [Policy announcement].
- NYU Shanghai. (2,023). Fact Sheet 2022–2023. https://shanghai.nyu.edu
- NYU Shanghai Career Development Center. (2,023). Class of 2022 Career Outcomes Report. https://shanghai.nyu.edu
- NYU Shanghai Institutional Report. (2,022). Undergraduate Class Size Statistics.
- NYU Shanghai Mobility Report. (2,022). Global Learning Data.
- Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau. (2,023). Annual Air Quality Bulletin 2022. http://sthj.sh.gov.cn
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