985

jiǔbāwǔ

noun

Meanings

1 Project 985 (China's top-tier elite universities)
2 a 985 university (colloquial)

Characters

Examples

他是985毕业的,简历一眼就被HR挑出来。

Tā shì jiǔbāwǔ bìyè de, jiǎnlì yī yǎn jiù bèi HR tiāo chūlái.

He graduated from a 985 university, so HR spotted his resume instantly.

非985不嫁?这要求也太高了吧。

Fēi jiǔbāwǔ bù jià? Zhè yāoqiú yě tài gāo le ba.

Won't marry anyone who isn't from a 985? Isn't that a bit much?

不是985的学校就没希望了吗?

Bú shì jiǔbāwǔ de xuéxiào jiù méi xīwàng le ma?

Are you doomed if your school isn't 985?

Tips

culture

Named after a May 1998 initiative (thus "985") to build world-class universities. The 39 schools on the list are the most prestigious in mainland China: Tsinghua, Peking, Fudan, etc. In job market shorthand, "是985吗?" = "Is it a top-tier school?"

usage

Read digit by digit: jiǔ-bā-wǔ. Often paired with 211 (a broader tier-2 elite group). 双一流 is the newer rebrand but 985 is still how people actually talk.