This book studies impact of Overseas Leadership Development Programmes for Chinese University Leaders in the Central and Western Regions of China, a research project funded by National Office for Education Sciences Planning (No. CIA170270), China. It is intended to enhance university leaders professionalism and to achieve impact on both the individual and institutional levels. The empirical data was collected using a mixed-methods approach including policy documents, learning diaries, a quantitative survey, and individual interviews. From the standpoint of transnational education, the book scrutinizes the context of the Chinese higher education governance system, the provision of overseas leadership development programmes, the needs of Chinese university leaders, the leadership development impact on the university leaders personal views regarding leadership, and its impact on institutional development and change. The book also addresses the challenges faced by these leaders when implementing the changes after their leadership development sections, explaining how these leadership development sections met or failed to meet the national goals of promoting innovation and social justice in university leaders work.
The findings presented here will greatly enrich readers knowledge concerning Chinese university leaders professionalism and professional development. Further, the respective chapters provide evidence-based recommendations for educational practitioners, policymakers, overseas trainers, and researchers who are interested in developing university leaders professionalism through targeted leadership development, making the book a valuable resource for leadership development, policymaking, and further educational research.

Dr. Xin Xing is a Lecturer at the Faculty of Educational Sciences, Yanan University (China) and a Visiting Scholar at the National Academy of Education Administration (China). His main research interests are leadership development in higher education, university governance and leadership as well as education for sustainability. Xin accomplished his Masters degree at the University of Jyväskylä (Finland) and earned his PhD degree from the University of Helsinki (Finland). During spring 2016 Xin was a Visiting Graduate Researcher at the UCL Institute of Education (U.K.). He is a member of the Higher Education Leadership Branch Association,China Association of Higher Education, the Chinese Society of Academic Degrees and Graduate Education as well as the Consortium of Higher Education Researchers in Finland. Currently, he is Principal Investigator of the National Office for Education Sciences Planning, China (NOESP) project on Impact of Overseas Leadership Development Programmes for Chinese Higher Education Institution Leaders in the Central and Western Regions of China. Xin has been dedicated to studying quality and impact of overseas leadership development programmes for Chinese school principals and university leaders since 2011. He has published five articles, book chapters as well as one book on this topic.
Dr. Meng Tian is an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership, University of Birmingham (U.K.). Herresearch interests cover school leaders professional development, distributed leadership, and leadership for social justice. Meng is CoConvenor of the Educational Leadership Network in the European Educational Research Association. From 2019 to 2021, Meng worked as Co-Director for the Centre for Research in Education in Asia (CREA) at the University of Bath, UK.Meng accomplished her Bachelors degree at the East China Normal University (China), and her Masters and Ph.D. degrees at the University of Jyväskylä (Finland). During her career, she has been a Researcher in several EU and international projects such as the European Policy Network of School Leadership (distributed leadership) and the International School Leadership Development Network (leadership for social justice). As Principal Investigator, she has led the British Association for International& Comparative Education (BAICE) project on Multi-Academy Trusts in England and Independent Schools in Finland and the British Council project on Leading Change Management in Educational Systems.

Part 1: The Context and Needs of Chinese Higher Education Leaders Overseas Training.- Chapter 1: The Context of Leadership in Public Higher Education in China.- Chapter 2: Needs and Rationale for Overseas Training.- Part 2: An Overall Picture of Overseas Training Programs 2012-2016.- Chapter 3: The Overseas Training Providers, Programs, and Training Topics.- Chapter 4: The Chinese Higher Education Leaders Demographics and Needs Analysis.- Part 3: The Impact of Overseas Training Programs on Individuals and Institutions.- Chapter 5: The Impact of Overseas Training Programs on Chinese Higher Education Institution Leaders Conceptions of Leadership and Western Higher Education Systems.- Chapter 6: The Impact of Overseas Training on Higher Education Institution Leaders Leadership.- Chapter 7: Overseas Training for Higher Education Institution Leaders and Universitys Development.- Chapter 8: Institutional Changes Influenced by the Overseas Training Programs: From Institutional Theory Perspective.- Chapter 9: The Implications and Recommendations for Future Overseas Training Programs.- Chapter 10: Conclusion.