Shenzhen is making an effort to establish a modern education system with high degrees of impartiality, modernization and globalization and sustainable development. The city is also increasing its strength in research in educational science.

Basic Education

In 2009, Shenzhen had 974 preschool educational institutions. There were 346 primary schools with 589,500 pupils. All school-age children went to school and all primary school graduates furthered their studies in middle schools. Shenzhen had 285 junior and senior high schools, eight more than the previous year, with 316,000 students, an increase of 5.7 percent. More than 90 percent of senior high graduates were enrolled by institutes of higher learning, a percentage as high as in developed countries.

Higher Education

Shenzhen has nine full-time institutes of higher learning and one part-time. One hundred and nine institutes of higher learning have set up branches in Shenzhen. Fifty-two institutes from home and abroad have conducted training and research in the Shenzhen Virtual University Park. In 2009, Shenzhen's full-time institutes of higher learning had 67,000 students. More than 600,000 students registered for self-study exams.

Shenzhen University

Shenzhen University is a full-time comprehensive university. It was established in 1983. In 2005 it was authorized to confer doctorates. It has 70 master's degree programs and three doctorate programs. The university has 57 majors in nine categories including philosophy, arts, economics, law, education, science, engineering, management, and medicine.

Shenzhen University City

It was jointly established by the Shenzhen Municipal Government and some prominent domestic universities as a teaching and research base to cultivate full-time postgraduates. Famous domestic universities such as Qinghua University, Beijing University, Renmin University of China and Harbin Institute of Technology have already set up bases there. Shenzhen University City has so far had 5,544 full-time students, including 793 in doctorate studies and 4,751 in master's degree studies. 

South China University of Science & Technology (under construction)

It is designed to be a high-level research-oriented university. Construction began on March 28, 2008. In accordance with the requirements of the Ministry of Education for the establishment of a new university, it is now busy building a faculty and campus infrastructure.

Vocational Education

Apart from attaching importance to cultivating a high level of technological professionals, Shenzhen is providing skills training for migrant workers. A modern vocational education system has been formed to tightly combine market demands with employment, which has a strong regional characteristic. The city has 20 secondary vocational schools with 47,000 students and more than 3,000 faculty members.

Higher vocational institutes include Shenzhen Polytechnic and Shenzhen Institute of Information Technology.

Internationalized Education

International Schools and Others

Shenzhen has six international schools: Shekou International School (SIS), QSI International School of Shekou (QSI), KIS International (KIS), Shenzhen American International School, the Japanese School of Shenzhen and Shenzhen Nanshan International School.

There is one jointly funded Sino-foreign school: International School of Sino-Canada.

The city also has three schools for Hong Kong and Taiwanese children: Shenzhen Oriental School for Hong Kong Children (originally Guangdong School for Hong Kong Children), Luohu School for Hong Kong Children and Shenzhen Oriental School for Taiwanese Children (originally Guangdong School for Taiwanese Children).

Expatriate Teachers and Students

Shenzhen has more than 600 expatriate teachers and more than 2,600 expatriate students, including more than 2,200 students seeking basic education and in kindergartens. A total of 419 expatriate students were studying in institutes of higher learning.