The China Case Center for Public Policy and Management (CCCPPM) was founded on July 3, 2004, as a subsidiary of the School of Public Policy and Management (SPPM), Tsinghua University. The main task of the center is to develop teaching cases in the field of public policy and management, and to promote case study and case teaching method in China, in the aim of improving teaching quality and cultivating qualified public sector professionals.

Establishment ceremony in 2004

The center adheres to three working principles:

- Attach equal importance to developing teaching cases & promoting case teaching methods.

- Attach equal importance to training teachers & cultivating students.

- Attach equal importance to taking root in China's practice & strengthening international cooperation.

Case Development

As China’s first producer and repository of public administration cases, the center develops time-sensitive, local and typical teaching cases with a collection of Chinese cases, English cases and multimedia cases, covering topics including public policy, crisis management, regional economics, leadership, NGO management, innovation in government and so on. A series of the center’s classic cases have been published by Tsinghua University Press, which have now come to its third issue. The first issue won the Textbook Prize of Higher Education in Beijing.

The center follows strict procedures for its case development, in which students and full-time case writers gather relevant information, conduct field research and complete writing under the guidance of professors. The center has engaged in intensive cooperation with local and central government agencies, firms and non-profit organizations. The quality control of the cases is critical to ensuring the quality of classroom teaching. The instructors and students will evaluate the case and its educational benefits when it is first used in the classroom.

In May 2018, a joint case study team from Tsinghua University and the University of Michigan 

conducted a field study at Red Flag Canal in Linzhou city, Henan Province

In May 2019, a joint case study team from Tsinghua University and the University of Michigan 

conducted a field study on lake governance and water pollution control in Yuxi city, Yunnan Province

China Case Bank

The center elaborately developed a high-quality online case database - China Case Bank. The database has been widely purchased and used by institutions and libraries in China, serving as a platform for teaching, training and research in public administration and a think tank for Chinese government departments and relevant organizations. Now it has included more than 200 typical Chinese language cases. All cases are well developed based on rich documentation and field research with the guidance from faculty members of the SPPM and all have been proven to be effective and significant in class teaching.

China Case Bank website: www.chinacases.cn   

China Case Bank

Training Program

The center has developed the annual case teaching training program, which consists of frequent workshops, regular lectures and interactive discussions. The training program aims to promote the application of case teaching methods in public administration education across the country, and establish an open and transparent network for case development and teaching that can be jointly built and shared by all. By 2020, the center has held 16 national training programs, some of which were jointly organized with the Maxwell School of Syracuse University, the Harvard Kennedy School, the World Bank Institute and the National MPA Education Steering Committee, inspiring about 1000 teachers from 200 colleges and universities so far. Moreover, the center has developed special training workshops and lectures for academic institutions based on their specific needs.

The trainees are discussing in groups

Competition Organization

The center holds National Public Policy Case Analysis Competition every year, encouraging Chinese undergraduate and mater students to work in teams to research real-world challenges, interview organizations and individuals, discover interesting cases, showcase their policy knowledge and hone practical skills through the analysis of case studies. Moreover, since 2018, an annual international case analysis competition on the theme of SDGs targeting to global students has been initiated. By 2021, the competitions has attracted 3,409 teams from 525 universities and colleges across China, the U.S., the U.K., Switzerland, Singapore, South Korea, France, Japan, Ireland, Australia and Germany, with a total of 12,967 participants.

The center also successfully hosted the 2017 and 2021 NASPAA-Batten Student Simulation Competition, and organize master students to participate in this event every year. Students compete in a day-long immersive computer simulation, through which they practice their abilities as policy makers and have a glimpse of the complexities of international negotiations. In 2021, our EMPA student Pui Kei Tse and her teammates from other participating universities got the first place in both the regional and global All-Star Round.

Tsinghua SPPM International Case Analysis Competition of Public Policy on Sustainable Development Goals

NASPAA-Batten Simulation Competition