Duke Kunshan to offer over $2 million in scholarships for undergraduate students

Candidates from Taiwan, HK, Macau can expect substantial financial support and enjoy home fees

KUNSHAN, China, Dec. 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Duke Kunshan University, a leading joint-venture university in China, set up by Duke University in the United States and Wuhan University in China, is offering substantial financial support with more than US$2 million in scholarships and bursaries for enrolled undergraduate students from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.

Located in the city of Kunshan, situated just outside of Shanghai and in the heart of the Yangtze River Delta region, Duke Kunshan University is now accepting applications for its inaugural undergraduate class beginning in August 2018.

When graduating from Duke Kunshan, students will receive a Duke degree and join Duke's global network of more than 170,000 alumni. Graduates will also receive a degree from Duke Kunshan University, which is approved by China's Ministry of Education.

The majority of enrolled students in the inaugural undergraduate class will receive substantial scholarship support. Scholarships are awarded for the entirety of the four year program, on the condition that all academic requirements are met. The highest amount awarded will provide funds to cover a full tuition scholarship for the duration of the four year program. All applicants are automatically considered for merit-based scholarships.

The inaugural class of 225 students is expected to comprise of at least 50 students from outside of mainland China.

The university especially welcomes applicants from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. Students from these regions are considered 'home students' and will enjoy the same tuition fee as their mainland counterparts, which is approximately 160,000 RMB (US$24,076) per year.

Following its miraculous growth, mainland China is gaining in popularity as a destination for students from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

According to Xinhua News Agency, more than 2,500 Hong Kong students applied for universities across the border in 2017. Nearly 1,400 Hong Kongers were recruited in the mainland in 2016.

Mainland universities recruited a record number of 865 students from Macau in 2017. The total number of students from Taiwan reached 10,823 as of the end of 2016.

Jiangsu province, home to Duke Kunshan, is the third largest destination for overseas students, behind only Beijing and Shanghai, according to China's Ministry of Education.

Denis Simon, executive vice chancellor of Duke Kunshan University stated: "Today, China is the world's second-biggest economy. In the times gone by, families would send their children to be educated in America or Europe, believing that the world's best universities could only be found in those countries."

"That has changed as students and their families look at how university education prepares students for life after graduation."

"Creating a global viewpoint and the ability to work and interact internationally is critical. We are now witnessing more and more students from the US, Canada, UK, Europe, Japan and other countries apply to study at Duke Kunshan University."

"As China's international influence expands, we believe that talented students from around the world will begin to gather here, and that will help us create a truly global university."

Duke Kunshan University's Chancellor and a member of Chinese Academy of Engineering Liu Jingnan said the university is "fully committed to providing financial assistance to talented students".

The four-year bachelor's degree program is based on an innovative and interdisciplinary liberal arts and sciences approach, allowing students to explore a variety of subjects and build a broad base of knowledge before selecting a major towards the end of their second year.

By the time Duke Kunshan's inaugural class of students declare their majors in 2020, the university will have 20 majors from which to choose, including Materials Science/Physics, Political Economy/Political Science, Environmental Science/Chemistry, US Studies/History, Media and Arts/Creative Practice and Data Science. Additional majors will also be developed.

The undergraduate academic program spans two continents - in Kunshan, at a state-of-the-art campus; and a two-semester experience at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.

Courses will be taught in English, in small-sized, discussion-based classes.

Duke Kunshan will have a student-faculty ratio of 11:1, which is far below the national average of 18:1, according to statistics from China's Ministry of Education.

Applications for the new undergraduate degree program are now open through the Common Application system with applications closing on January 15th, 2018: https://www.commonapp.org/school/duke-kunshan-university 

About Duke Kunshan University:

Duke Kunshan University is a partnership between Duke University in the United States and Wuhan University in China to offer world-class education to students from China and around the world.

A non-profit, joint venture institution, Duke Kunshan was granted accreditation approval by China's Ministry of Education in 2013 and welcomed its inaugural class of students in 2014.

It currently offers four master programs, namely medical physics, global health, environmental policy and management studies. All programs award degrees from Duke University.

Duke University is the only top-10 university in the US to establish a joint venture university in China.

Located in the dynamic, prosperous and historic city of Kunshan, Jiangsu province, China, Duke Kunshan has close proximity to Shanghai and Suzhou. Kunshan is also a center for business, high-tech research and manufacturing.

About Duke University

A private comprehensive teaching and research university, Duke traces its roots to 1838, and officially became Duke University in 1924. In addition to liberal arts and engineering education at the undergraduate level, Duke offers graduate and professional study in arts and sciences, business, divinity, engineering, the environment, law, public policy, medicine and nursing.

Duke enrolls more than 14,000 students in its undergraduate, graduate and professional programs. Duke faculty members Robert J. Lefkowitz and Paul L. Modrich were each honored with the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2012 and 2015, respectively.

Duke is also active internationally through the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School in Singapore, Duke Kunshan University in China and numerous research and education programs across the globe.

Duke's home campus is situated on nearly 9,000 acres in Durham, North Carolina, a city of more than 275,000 people in the well-known Research Triangle.