Colleges urged to establish majors that city needs

Colleges in Shanghai are being urged to establish majors that the city urgently needs, such as transportation, economic law, food science and atmospheric science, local media reported on Friday.

Business administration, electronic engineering, oceanic science, sociology, nursing, public health and design studies are also among the needed majors, according to a list released by the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission on Thursday.

The existing majors of colleges in Shanghai is not geared toward science-related courses, and many universities have the same subjects, which are not urgently needed by the job market, the Oriental Morning Post reported, citing unnamed commission officials.

For example, 15 universities in Shanghai have the same major in Marxism and applied economics, which is above market demand, the report said.

At the same time, however, there are not enough graduates from majors with big market demand, and that is why the commission released the list, the report said.

The commission is also committed to reforming the educational funds distribution system. Educational spending will be allocated based on the contribution of the subjects, as well as how well they serve the needs of society, according to the report.

The city plans to invest 72.4 billion yuan ($11.66 billion) in education this year, up from 70 billion yuan in 2012.