Is it realistic for an academic programme to set out with the explicit aim of identifying, educating and, crucially, networking future world leaders, as a business school might do for future company chief executives? This is the ambition of Schwarzman Scholars, a new scholarship programme that is backed by American money, based in China and led by a British academic.

Sir Nigel Thrift, former vice chancellor of the University of Warwick, is moving to New York to head the programme, which will be taught 7,000 miles away at Tsinghua University in Beijing and will include modules on Chinese history, economics and language. It was established with a $100 million (Rs.670 crore) donation from hedge fund billionaire Steven A. Schwarzman, a pledge that has since been bolstered with a further $275 million from other sources.

So does Thrift see any symbolism in the different contributions made by the US (financial), the UK (leadership) and China (academic focus)? “It shows that higher education has become incredibly international now, and that’s something that’s evident from looking at the students on the course as well,” he told Times Higher Education. “They come from the most remarkable range of backgrounds, not just the US.”

The goal is for about half the students to be American and a fifth Chinese, with the remainder coming from other countries. The first cohort will consist of 111 students, selected from a pool of 3,000 candidates after an interview process that was reportedly conducted in part by a former CIA director.

The teaching on the one-year Master’s course will be delivered primarily by Chinese professors, supported by high-profile visiting scholars such as the former Harvard president and economist Lawrence H. Summers. It will be taught in English — unusual in China — but students will also be required to take classes in Mandarin, and will pursue one of three degree options: public policy, economics and business, or international studies.

“We’re aiming to give these students serious exposure to China in all sorts of ways, whether that’s language teaching, Chinese history and culture — the idea is that when they leave, their leadership qualities will be enhanced, but so will their understanding of China and, of course, their contacts,” says Thrift.

It is inevitable, given the nature of the Schwarzman Scholars programme, that questions will be asked about the underlying motivation. Is it ultimately an attempt to improve US-Chinese integration at a political and economic level: education as a strand of diplomacy?

“It’s a kind of declaration,” Thrift replies. “China is there, and we need to have good relations with China. It doesn’t matter whether the students are from the US, Europe or elsewhere. This is about making sure that those links are forged early on, and I think that’s absolutely crucial. There are, inevitably, misunderstandings between people from different nations, and the only ways I know to solve most of those are patient diplomacy and building from ground up.”