New Mandarin-taught degrees could help boost the reputation of Singaporean universities overseas, academics have said, as institutions across South-east Asia look to capitalise on growing demand from Chinese students.?

Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Singapore Management University (SMU) are among those planning to introduce more non-English-language programmes for students.

NTU¡¯s Nanyang Business School, which already runs some courses taught in Mandarin, will launch a new Chinese-language executive MBA (EMBA) in October.?The course targets business leaders in the region seeking advanced management training without the need for English-language proficiency.

The university¡¯s existing Chinese-taught programme, which was launched in 2005, has about 50 students on average per academic year.?NTU also offers Chinese-taught degrees in public administration and technopreneurship, alongside its sole Chinese-medium undergraduate course in Chinese medicine.

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SMU will follow in January 2026 with its first Chinese-taught EMBA.

It comes as South-east Asian countries look to scoop up Chinese students and academics?amid ongoing geopolitical tensions with the US?and immigration crackdowns in anglophone destinations.?

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As a result, Chinese students are looking for alternative options, said Jason Tan, associate professor at NTU¡¯s National Institute of Education.?¡°China is the world¡¯s largest source of international students.?The relative affordability of tuition fees in Singapore and the universities¡¯ strong international reputation are huge factors.¡±

Terence Ho, associate professor at Singapore University of Social Sciences, agreed that the rise of Mandarin-taught programmes reflects ¡°strong demand by students from greater China for alternatives to education in the West¡±.

He added: ¡°This helps the Singapore universities offering such programmes to tap into the burgeoning Chinese higher education market, while fostering closer people-to-people ties between Singapore and China.¡±

But the move has nonetheless sparked debate. While some observers have welcomed the chance to attract fee-paying students, others worry that new programmes might not live up to the quality these institutions are known for.?

For Tan,?the decision has clear motivations, including reputation and revenue.

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¡°Hosting international students is a form of soft power. There is also the hope that these students will enhance the university¡¯s reputation in China,¡± he said.?

Philip Altbach, professor emeritus at Boston College¡¯s Center for International Higher Education, questioned the rationale.

¡°NTU and SMU are highly respected English-medium universities with high-quality programmes. They seem to have little problem attracting excellent students locally and internationally?for their existing programmes,¡± he said.

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¡°Further, Singapore¡¯s entire higher education system is English medium. Why these institutions would want to develop programmes in Mandarin is a mystery. And could these programmes be of the quality expected of NTU and SMU?¡±

Tan and Ho also warned that integration challenges remain.

¡°Mandarin-taught programmes tend to be less diverse ¨C in terms of student ethnicity and nationality - compared with programmes taught in English,¡± Ho said.

¡°Students in such programmes, if less conversant in English, may not be as well integrated with the rest of the student body unless there are efforts, whether initiated by the university administration or the students themselves, to promote social mixing.¡±

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Tan added: ¡°Since the programmes are taught in Chinese and all classmates are also from China, there may be less incentive for these students to use English. That is a valid concern.¡±

tash.mosheim@timeshighereducation.com