For many UK and Irish–China transnational education partnerships, delivering a substantial proportion of teaching through UK university faculty is central to the academic model. On paper, flying UK academics to China may appear straightforward. In practice, however, it can become one of the partnership’s most demanding and expensive operational commitments.
Teaching in China is often intensive
UK programmes typically include a significant amount of independent study. In China, delivery expectations can be different. Students and partner institutions may expect more scheduled contact hours, classroom teaching and direct academic support.
As a result, a module that is manageable within a UK workload model can become far more teaching-intensive when delivered in China. Visiting academics may be expected to teach concentrated blocks over several consecutive days while also providing tutorials, assessment guidance, staff development and student support.
Intensive block teaching is not necessarily good for the student experience either. Delivering a large amount of content within a short visit can leave students with limited time to absorb new concepts, reflect on their learning, ask follow-up questions and build sustained relationships with their lecturers. Once the visiting academic returns to the UK, students may also be uncertain about where to access continuing academic support.
The challenge is therefore not simply transporting a lecturer from the UK to China. It is ensuring that the academic has sufficient time, energy and institutional support to deliver effectively in a different educational environment.
The true cost is higher than the airfare
The financial cost of flying faculty extends well beyond flights and hotels. Universities must also consider:
- UK salary costs during the period overseas;
- visas, insurance and local transportation;
- accommodation and subsistence;
- timetable cover and replacement teaching in the UK;
- administrative support for travel and documentation;
- contingency arrangements for illness, delays or cancellations; and
- the management time required to coordinate delivery across two countries.
When several modules must be delivered each year, these costs can quickly place pressure on the financial sustainability of the partnership.
Disruption to teaching in the UK
An academic cannot be in two places at once. Sending staff to China may disrupt their teaching, supervision, research and administrative responsibilities at home.
Departments may need to reorganise timetables, employ additional sessional staff or ask colleagues to provide cover. This can create additional pressure during already busy periods, particularly when international delivery overlaps with assessment, recruitment, examination boards or the start of a new academic term.
If international teaching is treated as an additional responsibility rather than properly included in workload planning, it can also create concerns about fairness among colleagues.
Staff enthusiasm can be difficult to sustain
During the first year of a partnership, academics may be excited by the opportunity to teach overseas and experience China. However, repeated travel is very different from an occasional international visit.
Over time, family circumstances and personal commitments can make frequent or extended trips increasingly difficult. Staff may have children, caring responsibilities, health considerations or partners whose work makes international travel complicated.
Long flights, jet lag, intensive teaching schedules and limited recovery time can also contribute to fatigue. Universities may eventually find that the same small group of willing academics is repeatedly asked to travel, increasing the risk of burnout and reducing the resilience of the delivery model.
Everyday life can affect the staff experience
Visiting academics also need practical support to live and work comfortably in China. Everyday arrangements such as mobile payments, WeChat, Alipay, internet access, local transport, banking and communication can be unfamiliar to first-time visitors.
Location matters as well. Major cities can offer extensive international services and transport connections. In developing education zones or more remote locations—such as Lingshui in Hainan—staff may initially enjoy the environment but later find that their lifestyle, social and professional options are more limited during longer or repeated stays.
These issues may appear minor when a partnership is being negotiated, but they can significantly influence staff satisfaction and willingness to return.
Where is the sense of partnership?
A model based largely on academics flying in, delivering a block of teaching and flying home can also weaken the institutional relationship.
Students may receive a UK university’s curriculum and award without developing a meaningful connection to the university itself. If they rarely interact with the same academic twice, they may struggle to develop a sense of belonging, programme identity or membership of the wider university community.
The Chinese partner may experience similar concerns. A series of short teaching visits does not automatically create genuine academic collaboration. Without sustained staff engagement, joint curriculum development, shared academic activities and regular communication, the arrangement can begin to feel transactional rather than like a real partnership.
A successful TNE programme should therefore create more than compliant teaching hours. It should build an identifiable academic community in which students and staff on both sides understand the partnership, contribute to it and feel connected to its long-term purpose.
Flying faculty requires dedicated coordination
Successful international delivery needs more than a travel-booking service. It requires dedicated coordination across academic departments, human resources, finance, visa administration, timetabling and the Chinese partner institution.
Someone must take responsibility for:
- identifying and preparing suitable academics;
- aligning UK and Chinese academic calendars;
- coordinating visas, flights and accommodation;
- arranging local induction and practical support;
- monitoring workloads and staff wellbeing;
- providing contingency cover;
- maintaining teaching quality and consistency;
- building sustained engagement between UK and Chinese colleagues; and
- ensuring that delivery commitments are met and properly documented.
Without dedicated operational leadership, small problems can quickly become academic, financial or relationship risks.
What is the solution?
The answer is not necessarily to stop using flying faculty. Visiting UK academics can make an important contribution to academic quality, curriculum development, staff collaboration and the student experience.
However, relying entirely on repeated short-term travel is rarely the most scalable or resilient approach. The UK university should retain academic ownership, programme oversight, quality assurance and responsibility for its award. At the same time, selected elements of teaching and operational delivery can be supported through a carefully governed in-country model.
The right solution will depend on the programme, location, student numbers, regulatory commitments and the university’s appetite for investment. What matters is designing the staffing model at the beginning of the partnership—not discovering after launch that the promised delivery cannot be sustained.
Building a more sustainable China delivery model
China Connected works with universities to assess the real cost and operational feasibility of China-based teaching. We help institutions explore sustainable delivery options, including flying-faculty planning, China-based staffing, third-party academic delivery, operational coordination and local infrastructure.
More importantly, we help universities develop a visible and sustained presence that strengthens the experience of students, staff and institutional partners—not simply a timetable of short teaching visits.
If your institution is developing a new UK–China partnership—or finding that an existing flying-faculty model is becoming costly, disconnected or difficult to sustain—contact China Connected to explore a delivery model that protects academic standards while improving resilience, belonging, partnership identity and long-term financial viability.