The General Study Program at Shandong University employs developed counties' education systems and criteria, and provides the first two years of general university study leading to an undergraduate degree acceptable in most English speaking universities worldwide. This supplements the shortage of degree education in China while simultaneously promoting the export of Canadian higher education.
The GSP provides many advantages to Chinese students. The program actually divides four years of degree education into two parts, general study and major study. The general study portion may cover a specific discipline, yet it offers a broad variety of courses giving students who complete the GSP more flexibility in choosing future majors.
Most senior high school graduates are not prepared to consider all majors in all disciplines and thus find it difficult to confirm their lifelong major at that time. However, in China, if a student is admitted into a certain major in a university, he/she is unable to change his/her major due to the restriction of "quota of degree pre-assigned" imposed by Chinese central government. The GSP of Shandong University has successfully solved this problem and brings great benefits to its students.
The education goal of the GSP of Shandong University is to provide universal education meeting international standards. It offers a comprehensive general study program leading to an undergraduate degree, and effectively pioneers a way to overcome the education barriers existing in China.