In China you have to publish two papers in national or international journals before you defend your PhD. To my knowledge, neither in India nor in the developed world this rule is applied. This has forced many Chinese students to leave their doctoral studies in the middle way. Chinese universities are also in a race to introduce all the new courses and disciplines which are taught by their American counterparts, but they never realize that the Americans have developed those new disciplines in a century which China wants to do by a great leap forward (I mean in a decade time). Therefore, many of the Chinese students have developed into a monotonous personality to which they can be just the man of their discipline. Do not ask them anything beyond their discipline. China has overtaken India in many technical studies and realms of natural sciences, including the computer science. But Indian students are still supposed to be an all rounder and can think out of the box.

For the same problems facing students in Western societies as well as India, there is a team of psychological doctors who are providing 24hrs free clinical services to the victims of current mental amnesia, but the result is known to all of us. We always get shocked to read news stories where a student has open fire in a class room in an American top class university campus. Although Chinese universities such as PKU and others are organizing the same kind of psychological camps the outcome is not as expected. What I suggest is that there needs to be promoted a kind of amicable and intimate relationship among the students themselves. A fellow classmate becomes the best doctor and trusted partner for any private or academic issue he wants to discuss.

There is an urgent need in making the university atmosphere more harmonious between students and teachers as well as between students themselves. The second reform will require an overhaul of subject courses taught at higher institutions by cleaning the old structure and replacing them with the new and relevant in the 21st century confirming to the need of the rise of China. An alliance between Chinese universities and Indian universities by mutual exchange of students and teachers can also contribute to creating a lively and multi-dynamic talent in China suitable for the 21st century. As the growing trends of many top class university students from China are applying to work (as intern) with Indian software firms and multinational companies such as Infosys and TATA group suggests, the obsession of just working with developed countries and their universities might be set to end from now.

The write is a foreign faculty @Beijing Foreign Studies University and a PhD candidate @Peking University. He can be contacted at: [email protected]