BEIJING — Chinese education authority has required universities and colleges to rectify the problem of overemphasizing the role of theses in academic appraisals.

Universities and colleges should not take the number of theses included in the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) or the Chinese Social Sciences Citation Index (CSSCI) as the only or compulsory criterion for the recruitment, promotion or appraisal of professors and researchers, according to a guideline issued by the Ministry of Education.

The publishing of theses in academic journals should not be taken as the only criterion for awarding academic degrees, the guideline says.

The quality of a thesis should not be judged simply by the journal on which it is published or the author's title, honor and credentials, it adds.