The Shanghai Municipal Education Commission is a department under the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government that holds responsibility for overseeing education in Shanghai.

Main responsibilities are as follows:

1. Ensure the implementation of relevant education laws, regulations, rules, guidelines, and policies. Conduct research and develop local education regulations, rules, and policies, overseeing their implementation.

2. Undertake specific tasks assigned by the Leading Group for Educational Work under the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee. Conduct research on Party construction, ideological and political development, educational development strategies, and major reform initiatives in the field of education. Coordinate, supervise, and facilitate the implementation of resolutions, work arrangements, and requirements set forth by the Leading Group for Educational Work under the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee.

3. Conduct research and propose educational development and reform strategies for Shanghai. Compile educational development plans and annual education plans ed with national education development plans and Shanghai’s overall national economic and social development plan. Outline the development focus, scale, structure, spatial layout, and progressive steps for education. Provide guidance and coordination for the preparation and implementation of municipal and district/county-level educational plans and programs. Assume responsibility for collecting, analyzing, and announcing basic education information and statistics.

4. Conduct comprehensive planning and macro management of pre-school education, basic education, higher education, vocational education, lifelong education, and other educational sectors. Develop overall plans for the establishment of higher education institutions, discipline and specialty offerings, degree programs, school size, admission plans, and arrangements. Coordinate and guide comprehensive reforms in education systems, school management systems, and education and teaching practices. Build a modern school system and ensure schools operate in compliance with relevant laws in Shanghai.

5. Promote the high-quality and balanced development of compulsory education. Enhance the provision of public educational resources in suburban areas and strive for improved quality. Foster the integration of urban and rural education. Encourage diversification and specialization in general high schools. Deepen reforms that combine healthcare with special education. Strengthen admissions, education, and teaching management for ethnic minority classes in middle and high schools. Drive curriculum and teaching reforms in basic education and improve the infrastructure and equipment in basic education schools.

6. Strengthen vocational education and teaching management and promote curriculum and teaching reforms in this sector. Consolidate and enhance the level of secondary vocational education. Foster deeper industry-university-research cooperation for junior colleges (a type of higher vocational college). Develop vocational education options for undergraduates. Improve the training model for postgraduates with professional academic degrees. Encourage innovation in the school management model for non-government vocational education institutions and facilitate collaboration between state-run vocational schools/colleges and private entities. Establish a regular system for forecasting industrial human resource demands and monitoring employment conditions.

7. Optimize the layout and structure of higher education, improve policy measures, and allocate resources effectively. Implement classified management, guidance, and service for higher education. Foster active demand for higher education and adjust and optimize the structure of disciplines and specialties. Enhance the quality of undergraduate teaching, deepen mechanisms for postgraduate cultivation, and adjust and optimize the postgraduate education structure. Improve career guidance and service systems to enhance the employment and entrepreneurial abilities of undergraduates.

8. Implement discipline development plans for higher education institutions. Enhance the innovation capabilities of these institutions and promote the establishment of new think tanks, technology markets, and national science parks for colleges and universities. Provide guidance and advancement for education and teaching research in Shanghai. Conduct comprehensive planning for educational information infrastructure construction in the city.

9. Conduct overall planning, coordination, and guidance for the construction of a learning society and the promotion of lifelong education. Establish a lifelong education system in Shanghai, promote the development of learning organizations, and enhance community education, family education, rural education, and education for senior citizens. Guide rural adult schools in providing vocational or technical education and training. Collaborate with relevant departments to offer employment training for disadvantaged groups and oversee various non-academic educational activities. Conduct comprehensive planning for language standardization management, construction, and service in Shanghai. Provide guidance for anti-illiteracy education initiatives.

10. Encourage and regulate non-government educational institutions, fostering an environment conducive to their operation. Improve policy measures for the macro management of non-government education in Shanghai and provide guidance for non-government educational organizations.

11. Exercise centralized management for educational foreign exchange and plan and guide projects related to foreign affairs in the education system of Shanghai. Develop and enhance education for international students in Shanghai, improving the social service system for their education. Plan and guide international Chinese language education and the construction of Confucius Institutes and classrooms within the education system of Shanghai.

12. Conduct comprehensive planning and administration of admissions and student status management for all forms of academic education. Participate in formulating employment policies for graduates from general higher education institutions in the Municipality, reforming the employment system for graduates, and guiding higher education institutions in addressing employment and entrepreneurship among undergraduates. Develop an overall plan to help resolve students’ employment issues and participate in formulating and implementing education funding policies.

13. Provide comprehensive planning and guidance for the professional ethics development of teachers and educational administration cadres at all levels. Engage in macro management for teacher qualification accreditation and guide and coordinate recruitment and appointments for professional and technical positions in the education sector.

14. Conduct comprehensive planning and provide guidance for moral education, physical education and health initiatives, art and science popularization, and national defense education in schools at all levels. Strengthen the construction of instructor teams and enhance ideological and political theory courses in general higher education institutions within the Municipality.

15. Manage municipal educational appropriations and state-owned educational assets. Contribute to the development of fee standards for schools at all levels and enhance the management of education fees. Oversee the execution of the educational budget and ensure the proper use of educational funds. Manage educational infrastructure projects and coordinate the construction and management of college and university campuses in Shanghai. Take charge of educational audits and inspections in Shanghai.

16. Organize educational supervision and assessment activities. Evaluate and monitor the academic quality of basic education and develop and improve educational standards at all levels that  with the national educational standard system and the specific needs of Shanghai.

17. Plan, guide, and coordinate the reform of school logistics, logistics management, and the development of environmentally-friendly campuses. Coordinate and provide guidance for public security education, drug control education, campus security management, and emergency management initiatives. Facilitate coordination and guidance for the protection of minors. Oversee comprehensive security governance in colleges, universities, primary, middle, and high schools, as well as kindergartens and their surrounding areas.

18. Handle the acceptance and hearing of relevant administrative reviews and responses to administrative proceedings within the education system. Coordinate the management of public grievances and visits from the public through the education system.

19. Fulfill any additional tasks assigned by the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government.