China’s e-commerce higher education: A 15 years review from international viewpoint

China’s education sector has involved in e-commerce programs since the beginning of this century as one of international pioneers in 2001. However, a gap still exists between China’s e-commerce education and industry demands that China’s e-commerce education seems far from meeting business’s expectations. This paper described firstly the current situation of China’s e-commerce education. Based on the literature review and interviews, the reasons why this gap existed were then analysed with four challenges including argue on separate vs. integrated focus, technical vs. non-technical focus, textbook concerns, and lack of industry involvement. Finally, several suggestions were provided for helping China’s educators to gain input from international experience and solving relevant challenges. Although this research focused mainly on China’s e-commerce education, the introductory materials discussing China’s current state should be valuable for any universities being interested in China’s e-commerce education. This can also serve as a spring board to discuss the overall framework for e-commerce education in developing countries.