Vol. 8(16), pp. 671-680, 28 August, 2014 DOI: 10.5897/AJBM2013.7334 Article Number: C56EAEF47138 African Journal of Business Management ISSN 1993-8233 Copyright © 2014 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article http://www.academicjournals.org/AJBM Full Length Research Paper What drives Chinese private colleges’ internationalization? Xiaojing Wang Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China. Received 24 December, 2013; Accepted 14 August, 2014 Internationalization of private higher education has attracted considerable interest recently. After clarifying the status quo of Chinese private colleges, we proposed the conceptual model of Chinese private colleges’ internationalization. This paper adopted a “strategy tripod” perspective in integrating the impact of the resource-, contingency-, and institution-based factors on Chinese private colleges’ internationalization. Propositions were developed to indicate the driving forces of Chinese private colleges’ internationalization and showed the influence of Chinese private colleges’ internationalization on their performance like reputation and income. Generally, internationalization of Chinese private colleges was an important way to improve their performance in the long run. Key words: Chinese private colleges, internationalization, driving forces, strategy tripod. INTRODUCTION With the development of private higher education all China, he just concentrated on joint operations and pro- around the world, study on private colleges becomes a grams which are one of the forms of internationalization continuing trend. Private colleges refer to colleges and it was primarily suitable to public higher education. responsible for their own funding, along with internal Hence, to study on internationalization of Chinese private governance and management, the relationship to colleges is supplementary to existing literature. government and public authorities, and their planning. In There are literatures on motivations of internationa- the existing literature, private colleges in the United States, lization of higher education, but they have focused on Poland, Britain, Hungary, and Russia have been explored. internationalization of public higher education, not private Yet very little is known about private colleges in China. colleges. Moreover, the existing literatures have focused Due to economic globalization, internationalization of on the goals of internationalization. While one of the forms private colleges is not a new phenomenon. Hurtado et al. of internationalization and it was primarily suitable to (2013) thought internationalization had become a key public higher education. The author argues that interna- theme in higher education. Huang (2007) provided a tionalization itself is in particular a goal. detailed description of transnational higher education in As a result, the lack of study on the factors driving E-mail: [email protected]. Authors agree that this article remain permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License 672 Afr. J. Bus. Manage. Chinese private colleges’ internationalization is a major concerned the history of private colleges. gap. The second question addresses the operation of private Therefore, the study of Chinese private colleges’ colleges. For example, Russo and Coomes (2003) argued internationalization not only can provide theoretical that the long term pricing strategy of private college must guidance to private colleges, but also can fill in the major be sensitive to its basic mission. Rood (2009) examined gap and enrich the existing international literature. first-generation students’ college choice and persistence There are two purposes in this paper. First, we integrate at a private Christian college in the U.S. Northeast. Jones the resource-based view, contingency theory, and the (2010) explored general education assessment at private institution-based view to seek the driving factors of historically black colleges and universities. Giles (2012) Chinese private colleges’ internationalization. Based on indicated the impact of adult degree programs on private resource-based view entrepreneurial spirit is a very college or university. important factor driving the internationalization of Chinese Internationalization is a popular term, and there are private colleges. Based on contingency theory industry many ways to define it. Scott (2000) argued that interna- competition is a motivation of Chinese private colleges’ tionalism of the university took two main forms- internationalization. Based on the institution-based view internationalism associated with imperialism and interna- governmental supportive regulations cannot be neglected tionalism focusing on science and scientific method. in Chinese private colleges’ internationalization. Huang (2003b) who was interested in Chinese higher Second, the author attempts to propose the fundamental education indicated internationalization had changed from relationship between internationalization and private activities concerning traditional outflows of international colleges’ performance. My aim is to fill in the two major scholars, faculty members, and students to those relating gaps in the higher education internationalization literature to transnational higher education and internationalization by addressing two fundamental questions:(1)What is the of curricula. Altbach and Knight (2007) argued that driving factors of some Chinese private colleges to internationalization included the policies and practices engage in internationalization? (2)What are the effects of undertaken by academic systems and institutions—and Chinese private colleges’ internationalization on their even individuals—to cope with the global academic performance? environment. The remainder of this paper is organized as follows: As for the motivations for internationalization, Altbach First is the review of related literature. Second is on the and Knight (2007) argued profit-seeking, knowledge and status quo of Chinese private colleges. Third, strategy the language acquisition, demand absorption and many tripod perspective is used to analyze the driving factors of others were the motivations for internationalization. Chen Chinese private colleges’ internationalization, advancing and Weng (2008) proposed that the internationalization of some related propositions. Fourth, a conceptual model is higher education was driven by inner power of knowledge proposed that links entrepreneurial spirit, industry universality and outer power of politics, economy and competition, and governmental supportive regulation to culture. According to Wang (2014), apart from the mutual internationalization and links internationalization to its understanding approach for internationalization of higher effects. Fifth is the measurement of the related variables education, there were capacity-building approach, the and then conclusion. skilled migration approach and revenue-generating ap- proach. And she argued that there were different motives in accordance with different approaches. For instance, LITERATURE REVIEW revenue-generating approach had more concern of generating revenue. The existing literature examines two basic questions about private colleges. The first question is: what is the development history of private colleges? From the The status quo of Chinese private colleges literature private colleges have been discussed in some countries such as the United States, Poland, Britain, There are two kinds of full-time teachers in Chinese Hungary, and Russia. Williams and Colby (1991) traced private colleges: senior teachers who have rich life and the history of the private junior college in the United States. teaching experiences and young teachers who are Szabłowski (2001) argued that private higher education innovative and risk-taking. Full-time staff are supple- institutions in Poland were not as well treated as public mented by part-timers, who include retired scholars of institutions. Beloff (2001) showed launching process of a distinction and persons on-the-job in firms who have British private college which focused on liberal education. teachers’ qualification certificate. Part-time faculty can Gömbös (2003) introduced private colleges in Hungary. afford important financial savings. Petrenko and Glanzer (2005) described the development A majority of income of Chinese private college come of private Christian colleges in Russia. To sum up’ they all from tuition. In Chinese private colleges, every student Wang 673 Figure 1. The status quo of private colleges’ internationalization in China. must be able to afford to pay the fees charged. The tuition Shanxi province doing well in internationalization. is constrained by the education committee, to illustrate, Wuyishan Vocational College is in Fujian province doing most of the Chinese private colleges in Shanghai can only well in internationalization. Nanhua College of Industry charge one student tuition 10000RMB per year. Small part and Commerce, and Lingnan Institute of Technology are of majors like art can charge one student tuition in Guangdong province doing well in internationalization. 13000RMB or 15000RMB per year. Hebei Foreign Studies University, and Shijiazhuang As at April 24, 2012, there are altogether 403 Economic Vocational College are in Hebei province doing independent private colleges in China. Last year, my well in internationalization. Wuchang University of Tech- students and I had