Missouri State University Trained Over 1,500 Managers for Chinese State-Owned Firms

A Strategy Risks report states that Missouri State University trained more than 1,500 current and future managers for Chinese state-owned enterprises and government bodies, including the defense industry, through its MBA program by 2018. Missouri State University is a publicly funded institution.

Strategy Risks estimates U.S. taxpayer support for the program reached tens of millions of dollars based on figures from a recruiting presentation by a Chinese university.

The program began in 2001 after Chinese officials visited the United States in 1999 seeking MBA programs to train managers. The Chinese Communist Party controlled admission, requiring candidates to be formal party members cleared for overseas travel.

By 2015, 107 finance personnel from the Aviation Industry Corporation of China system had completed the program. One graduate later became Party Secretary, Chairman, and Legal Representative for an AVIC International Financial Leasing unit.

"We are aware of the report released by Strategy Risks regarding Missouri State University. No taxpayer dollars were directed toward the program, as the report alleges but readily admits it cannot substantiate," an MSU spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The same spokesperson said students studied a conventional business curriculum with no evidence of espionage or misconduct and were required to comply with all U.S. State Department visa regulations. The report found the program maintained a partnership with Liaoning Normal University in China that was still operating as of July 2024.