Adult institutions of higher learning, different from ordinary institutions of higher learning, refer to schools that are approved to hold in accordance with the setting standards and examination and approval procedures stipulated by the state, pass the unified entrance examination for adult institutions of higher learning (adult college entrance examination), recruit on-the-job employees with ordinary high school education or equivalent education (vocational high schools, technical schools, secondary vocational schools) as the main training objects, and implement higher education in various forms such as correspondence, part-time and full-time.

Adult institutions of higher learning include radio and television universities, staff universities, amateur universities, staff medical colleges, management cadre colleges, education colleges, and adult (continuing) education colleges in ordinary universities.

Adult higher education is an important part of our higher education system. It belongs to the national education series and is included in the national enrollment plan. The state recognizes academic qualifications. After taking the national unified entrance examination, candidates will be admitted by the provinces and autonomous regions.

College generally refers to university education, which is an important part of higher education in China and one of the academic levels of universities. Different from undergraduate education, junior college education is mainly undertaken by higher vocational colleges and junior colleges, and some undergraduate colleges also offer junior colleges. No degree will be awarded to a junior college, but a diploma will be awarded after graduation.

Both higher vocational colleges and junior colleges belong to the junior college level of general higher education. The former focuses on technology, while the latter focuses on theory, with different emphases and no essential difference. The training objectives of the two are unified. On the basis of completing secondary education, we will train a group of senior technicians with university knowledge and certain professional skills. Their knowledge teaching is based on sufficiency and practicality, and enrollment is combined.