The study aims to explore the impact of examination-oriented education on Chinese English learners and the importance of cultural intelligence in second language acquisition. Through a questionnaire administered to postgraduate students majoring in English in China, the research discovered that the emphasis on test scores and strategies in China’s higher English education system has led to a neglect of cultural backgrounds and cross-cultural communication. The findings underscore the necessity for reforms in English teaching within Chinese higher education to cultivate students’ intercultural intelligence and enhance their readiness for international careers in the era of globalization.

This study aims to explore the research on Chinese higher education policy from 2005 to 2024 through a bibliometric analysis. It is revealed that a continuous growth trend and sustained academic interest in this field. Mainland China leads in publication quantity, showcasing the active involvement of Chinese scholars in higher education policy research. Institutions like Peking University, the University of Hong Kong, and Beijing Normal University play significant roles in this research domain. The focus of research has shifted from student attitudes to international students, teachers, innovation models, changing demands, and urban education development, reflecting a growing emphasis on sustainability and internationalization. The study highlights the positive development trajectory of Chinese higher education policy research, with expanding research focuses and deepening concerns for sustainability and internationalization.

On the basis of the enlightenment of international engineering education accreditation for the reform and development of higher education in China, combined with the important measures of the national “double first-class” construction, new challenges have been proposed for innovative talent cultivation among engineering majors in the context of promoting national development. These challenges also promote the reform of science-oriented courses among engineering majors. As a core mandatory course for engineering majors, biochemistry plays a crucial role in the entire educational process at universities, serving as a bridge between basic and specialized courses. To address challenges such as limited course resources, insufficient development of students’ advanced thinking and innovation skills, and overly standardized assessment methods, the bioengineering major from Guilin University of Technology restructured the biochemistry course content. A blended teaching model termed “three integrations, three stages, one sharing”, was implemented. This effort has yielded significant results, providing a research foundation for constructing an innovative talent cultivation system that is oriented toward industry needs within modern industrial colleges. It also offers valuable insights into and reference points for the cultivation of engineering talents and curriculum reform in local universities.

Intellectual capital is one of the most crucial determinants of long-term economic development. The countries compete for highly skilled labor and talented youth. State regulatory interventions aim to, on the one hand, facilitate the retention of foreign high-productivity intellectual capital in the host country, transforming ‘educational’ and ‘scientific’ migrants into residents, and on the other hand, prevent the outflow of their own qualified workforce. The paper aims to outline the role of the nation’s higher education system in the influx and outflow of labor resources. A two-stage approach is applied: 1) maximum likelihood—to cluster the EU countries and the potential candidates to become members of EU countries based on the integrated competitiveness of their higher education systems, considering quantitative, qualitative, and internationalization aspects; 2) logit and probit models—to estimate the likelihood of net migration flow surpassing baseline cluster levels and the probability of migration intensity changes for each cluster. Empirical findings allow the identification of four country clusters. Forecasts indicate the highest likelihood of increased net migration flow in the second cluster (66.7%) and a significant likelihood in the third cluster (23.4%). However, the likelihood of such an increase is statistically insignificant for countries in the first and fourth clusters. The conclusions emphasize the need for regulatory interventions that enhance higher education quality, ensure equal access for migrants, foster population literacy, and facilitate lifelong learning. Such measures are imperative to safeguard the nation’s intellectual potential and deter labor emigration.

Institutions of higher learning are crucial to sustainability. They play a crucial role in preparing the next generation of leaders who will successfully execute the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nation. This research therefore intends to present a preliminary conceptual approach in examining how industrial revolution 4.0 (I.R. 4.0) technologies, and lean practices affect sustainability in South Africa’s Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The study shall employ survey questionnaire to collect data from the employees of the institutions. This preliminary study reveals that hybrid IR 4.0 technologies and lean practices as enablers of sustainability has not gained enough attention in the HEIs. Existing literature show the important role plays by performance variance of lean practices to improve sustainable performance when deployed from industry to education sector. The report validates the HEI’s future course, which has been incorporating new technology into its services processes recently. Using the created items, researchers may utilize empirical analysis to look into the combined effects of lean practices and IR 4.0 technologies on sustainability in HEIs. The following conclusions may be drawn: HEIs are essential for the application of sustainability principles; curriculum focused on sustainability and culture change are critical for attitude development; and the political climate and stakeholder interests impact the implementation of sustainability.