Universities across China have quietly changed the structure and names of their campus security offices in recent years. Units that once operated mainly as administrative departments are now being placed directly under Chinese Communist Party (CCP) committees, with new titles that highlight “security” and “stability.”
The changes go beyond a simple rebranding. According to former university staff and a Beijing-based scholar, they reflect the CCP’s broader effort to tighten political control on campuses, strengthen ideological oversight, and prioritize political duties in higher education.
Over the past two years, many universities have implemented what they call “organizational adjustments.” Security offices have been renamed or given additional titles, such as “Party Committee Department for Security and Stability Work” or “Party Committee Security Department.” The new wording emphasizes that campus security now falls directly under CCP leadership.
Beijing International Studies University, Beijing Vocational College of Agriculture, and Beijing Wuzi University are among those that have renamed their security offices as the “Party Committee Department for Security and Stability Work.” The updated titles appear in school documents and public notices reviewed by The Epoch Times.
On the official websites of Tianjin University, Tianjin Normal University, and Tianjin University of Commerce, similar units are listed as “Party Committee Security Work Department.”
Their stated duties include political security, national security education, and public order management. Comparable structures can also be found at Hefei University of Technology, Xi’an University of Posts and Telecommunications, and Chongqing Vocational College of Culture and Arts.
Political and Ideological Monitoring
Wang, a former administrative staff member at a university in Shaanxi Province who provided only his surname out of fear of reprisal, said the move reflects pressure from higher authorities.
“University Party committees have been required to strengthen political and ideological education for students and faculty, and to stay aligned with the top CCP leadership,” Wang told The Epoch Times.
Wang said the change has real consequences. A former classmate of his who works at Xi’an Jiaotong University attends weekly coordination meetings that focus largely on monitoring student trends and campus developments.
According to Wang, the nationwide trend began around 2017.
“University security offices used to function mainly as administrative departments,“ he said. ”Now, they are required to take on responsibilities for political security and stability.”
Adding “Party Committee” to the name means security work is formally placed within the CCP committee’s leadership structure, he added.
A Beijing-based scholar surnamed Song said the shift is structural, not symbolic.
“In the CCP structure, a ‘department’ usually belongs to the Party committee system, while an ‘office’ is an administrative unit,” Song told The Epoch Times, also providing only his surname out of fear of reprisal.
“When a Security Office is upgraded to a Security and Stability Department, it’s not simply a name change—it creates a direct channel into the CCP committee hierarchy.”
In practice, that often means the head of security gains access to the university’s top decision-making body, the Party committee’s standing committee, Song said. Security work shifts from a support role to a core political task.
Song noted that the newly named departments often include terms such as “security and stability,” “security protection,” and “security management.” Their responsibilities now commonly include political risk management, ideological oversight, public opinion monitoring, and the prevention of group incidents.
Official documents confirm this direction. In 2017, the CCP Central Committee and the State Council issued guidance calling for stronger Party leadership in universities and tighter control over political security and ideological work.
In 2020, eight departments, including the Ministry of Education, released another document calling for a clearer security responsibility system and the implementation of the Party committee’s primary responsibilities.
Song said the emphasis is now visible on campuses. “Classrooms have been equipped with surveillance cameras to monitor teachers’ remarks, and these are monitored by security offices and local police,” he said.
He added that what authorities describe as “political stability” and “national security” has become one of the CCP committee’s key missions in higher education.
Feng Fei contributed to this report.
