Building global-class universities: Assessing the impact of the 985 Project

In 2006 China had become the fifth leading nation in terms of its share of the world's scientific publications. Today it is second only to the United States. This achievement has been accomplished in part by a conscientious effort by the government to improve the research performance of China's universities through a series of programs, the most important of which is the 985 Project. This paper considers the effects of the 985 Project on increasing the rate of publication in international journals by researchers at 24 universities. Using the approach of linear mixed modeling, it was found that the rate of growth in publications by lower tier universities exceeded that of China's two most highly regarded universities after controlling for university R&D funding, university personnel size, and provincial per capita income. It was also found that the rate of growth of publications for universities as a whole increased more quickly after the implementation of the 985 Project.

► We measure the research publications of 24 Chinese universities in the 985 Project. ► We control for university R&D, personnel, and provincial income per capita. ► Lower ranked universities grew faster in publications than did higher ranked universities. ► Publications of all universities grew faster after the 985 Project was implemented.