The 33 universities designated for ACYLS and the rule on changing after admission

The ACYLS is carried out within 33 designated Chinese universities, and the list is fixed in the Guidebook to the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship published by the China Scholarship Council on Campus China. Changing is not a matter of course: the guidebook states that recipients shall not change their host university, field of study or duration of study as stipulated on the Admission Letter, and that changes during study in China are not allowed in principle.

The universities sit in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Xiamen, Wuhan, Changsha, Chengdu, Nanning, Guiyang and Kunming. The guidebook lists them by number, with no ranking and no description of any institution.

The 33 designated universities and their cities

No.	University	City
1	Peking University	Beijing
2	Tsinghua University	Beijing
3	Renmin University of China	Beijing
4	Beijing Normal University	Beijing
5	China Agricultural University	Beijing
6	Beijing Foreign Studies University	Beijing
7	Beijing Language and Culture University	Beijing
8	University of Science and Technology Beijing	Beijing
9	Beijing Jiaotong University	Beijing
10	Communication University of China	Beijing
11	Central University of Finance and Economics	Beijing
12	University of International Business and Economics	Beijing
13	Nankai University	Tianjin
14	Tianjin University	Tianjin
15	Fudan University	Shanghai
16	Shanghai Jiao Tong University	Shanghai
17	Tongji University	Shanghai
18	East China University of Science and Technology	Shanghai
19	Shanghai University of Finance and Economics	Shanghai
20	Nanjing University	Nanjing
21	Zhejiang University	Hangzhou
22	Xiamen University	Xiamen
23	Wuhan University	Wuhan
24	Huazhong University of Science and Technology	Wuhan
25	Hunan University	Changsha
26	Sichuan University	Chengdu
27	Beihang University	Beijing
28	Beijing Institute of Technology	Beijing
29	China Foreign Affairs University	Beijing
30	Shanghai University	Shanghai
31	Guangxi University	Nanning
32	Guizhou University	Guiyang
33	Yunnan University	Kunming

How placement works

Each applicant can choose one major and three preferred universities out of the 33 designated universities. CSC then places each applicant in one university based on those choices and the universities' requirements.

Placement is not simply an allocation against your list. The guidebook reserves CSC the right to make necessary adjustments or changes to a candidate's preferred university and field of study, on the basis of factors it names: scholarship funding requirements, the host university's teaching capacity, the length of study, and the applicants' criteria. The placement results are confirmed by the universities.

What the confirmation stage involves

Qualified applications are sent by CSC to the candidates' preferred universities for placement. Winners of the scholarship receive the final results from CSC by email before 31 July; the guidebook does not attach a year to that date. The Admission Letter and the Confirmation Form for Study in China (JW201) come from the host university.

Two further points are stated in the same section. The scholarship will not be reserved if a recipient cannot register before the registration deadline. And applicants must provide accurate, detailed and valid information for the "Current Contact Information" field of CGSIS.

Changing university, major or study length

The rule appears twice, and the two statements are worth reading together.

On arrival, the guidebook says scholarship recipients shall not change their host university, field of study, or the duration of study stipulated on the Admission Letter after coming to China.

During study, the "Application for Change" section says students are not allowed, in principle, to change their academic programs, host universities or the length of schooling. Those who need to change for special reasons must apply to CSC through their host university. A change can take place only after approval from both CSC and the ACYLS Joint Committee based in Jakarta.

So a change is possible only as an exception, routed through the host university, and it needs two approvals. The guidebook does not describe any other route.

What the guidebook does not say

The page gives no application deadline date. The placement and confirmation sections do not state how places are divided among the 33 universities, and they do not set out how long a change request takes to be decided.

Questions people ask

Can I change universities after I arrive in China?

No. The guidebook states that scholarship recipients shall not change the host university, field of study or duration of study stipulated on the Admission Letter after coming to China. During study, changes are not allowed in principle, and a request for special reasons goes to CSC via the host university and needs approval from both CSC and the ACYLS Joint Committee based in Jakarta.

Can I change my major or the length of my study?

Only through the same route. The guidebook treats academic program, host university and length of schooling together: none may be changed in principle during study in China, and any exception needs the approval of CSC and the ACYLS Joint Committee based in Jakarta.

How many universities can I list on the application?

Three. Each applicant can choose one major and three preferred universities out of the 33 designated universities.

Can CSC place me at a university I did not list?

Yes, in the sense that the guidebook reserves CSC the right to make necessary adjustments or changes to a candidate's preferred university and field of study, weighing scholarship funding requirements, the host university's teaching capacity, the length of study and the applicants' criteria. The placement result is confirmed by the university.

When will I receive my result?

Winners of the scholarship receive the final results from CSC by email before 31 July. The Admission Letter and JW201 form are then issued by the host university.

Sources

• Guidebook to the ASEAN-China Young Leaders Scholarship — China Scholarship Council (Campus China, campuschina.org)

Checked 10 October 2026.

This page is an unofficial summary of that guidebook, is not published by the China Scholarship Council, Campus China or any university named above, and the official guidebook prevails if the two differ.