The modern university was born in Germany. In the twentieth century, the United States leapfrogged Germany to become the global leader in higher education. Will China challenge its position in the twenty-first?

Today American institutions dominate nearly every major ranking of global universities. Yet in historical terms, America’s preeminence is relatively new, and there is no reason to assume that US schools will continue to lead the world a century from now. Indeed, America’s supremacy in higher education is under great stress, particularly at its public universities. At the same time Chinese universities are on the ascent. Thirty years ago, Chinese institutions were reopening after the catastrophe of the Cultural Revolution; today they are some of the most innovative educational centers in the world. Will China threaten American primacy?

Empires of Ideas looks to the past two hundred years for answers, chronicling two revolutions in higher education: the birth of the research university and its integration with the liberal education model. William C. Kirby examines the successes of leading universities—The University of Berlin and the Free University of Berlin in Germany; Harvard, Duke, and the University of California, Berkeley, in the United States—to determine how they rose to prominence and what threats they currently face. Kirby draws illuminating comparisons to the trajectories of three Chinese contenders: Tsinghua University, Nanjing University, and the University of Hong Kong, which aim to be world-class institutions that can compete with the best the United States and Europe have to offer.

But Chinese institutions also face obstacles. Kirby analyzes the challenges that Chinese academic leaders must confront: reinvesting in undergraduate teaching, developing new models of funding, and navigating a political system that may undermine a true commitment to free inquiry and academic excellence.

"Timely…he makes a powerful argument about what it takes to be a leading university dedicated to the creation of new knowledge…Kirby’s book shows how catalytic is the combination of strong nations and universities that advance knowledge and foster critical and creative thinking. Now more, perhaps, than ever." - Wall Street Journal

"Substantive on virtually every page, the author actually understands how universities work…An impressive performance." - Marginal Revolution

"Although Empires of Ideas is nominally about the rise of the research university from its origins in 19th-century Germany though America’s global leadership in the 20th, it will probably be what Kirby has to say about China in the 21st that will generate the most interest…Rigorous in its arguments, Empires of Ideas is also well-written." - Asian Review of Books

"What factors make research universities great—and, conversely, what variables threaten these institutions’ eminence? [Kirby’s] case studies are highly revealing…[A] fascinating book." - Inside Higher Ed

"Rather than offering an overview of the university landscape, Kirby adopts the case-based approach employed in the curricula of the Harvard Business School. He traces the history of eight institutions whose trajectories he views as exemplary…There are advantages to Kirby’s case study approach. Tracing the history of an individual institution offers the reader a vivid sense of the interplay of historical contingency, policy mandates, and individual actors." - Issues in Science and Technology

"A masterful account of higher education in Germany, the United States, and China." - University Bookman

"Kirby weaves together traditional historical analysis with personal narratives and experiences with German, American, and Chinese higher education systems…Offers a genuine insider’s glimpse into the inner workings of these universities." - Hansa Review of Books