This book is a critical account of the history, evolution and challenges of higher education in mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, with important reflections on other systems, notably those in the US, UK, Korea and Japan. In addition to hardware and software, it introduces the concept of "Soulware" in global higher education and analyses its importance for internationalization and the pursuit of excellence. In an age where robots and artificial intelligence are impacting our jobs and our daily lives, its critical analysis and insightful reflections provide considerable value for a range of global stakeholders interested in higher education reform to nurture talent and promote innovation to prepare students for an unpredictable future.
"Professor Kuo’s perspective provides considerable value for a range of global stakeholders both in the east and the west. As American universities awake to the realization that the demand for higher education is an increasingly global phenomena, his contribution could not be more timely."
Mike Crow, PhD President, Arizona State University
"Way Kuo advances a powerful historical argument for the means to achieve excellence in Asian universities. His recipe is bold leadership, combining excellence in teaching and research, and embracing the lessons of western university successes and failures. A superb combination of history and forward thinking."
Michael Kotlikoff, VMD, PhD Provost, Cornell University
"Way’s book is not just about the past or the present. Rather, it offers useful insights into the future. In an age where robots and artificial intelligence are impacting our jobs and our daily lives, he introduces the concept of “soulware” and analyzes its importance for higher education."
G. P. “Bud” Peterson, PhD President, Georgia Institute of Technology
"Differing from their Western counterparts, Chinese universities will demonstrate their own cultural characteristics. In this regard, Professor Kuo’s book offers us many valuable insights."
Yong Qiu, PhD President, Tsinghua University, Beijing
"Wisdom is the ultimate goal of higher education. It is the illumination of that wisdom among audiences, English-speaking or Chinese-speaking, to which Way Kuo’s book hopes to kindle a spark."
Frank H. Shu, PhD President, 2002-06, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, and University Professor Emeritus, University of California, Berkeley and San Diego
Professor Way Kuo is President of City University of Hong Kong. He is a Member of US National Academy of Engineering, Academia Sinica in Taiwan, ROC, and Academy of Sciences of Hong Kong; and a Foreign Member of Chinese Academy of Engineering and Russian Academy of Engineering.
Before joining CityU, Professor Kuo was on the Senior Management team of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and served as Dean of Engineering at the University of Tennessee, Head of the Department of Industrial Engineering at Texas A&M University. He has worked at Bell Labs, Holmdel, NJ, before assuming the professorship at Iowa State University. He received PhD in engineering in 1980 from Kansas State University, and BS in nuclear engineering in 1972 from National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan. In 2011, he was granted Dr. Phil. Honoris Causa by the People's Republic of China through Beijing Institute of Technology.
