Staying abreast of developments in Chinese higher education is challenging. In addition to geopolitical circumstances, language, history, and culture can make it difficult for U.S. university leaders and policy makers to establish deep, meaningful relationships with Chinese colleagues. In addition, China is a huge country, with nuanced regional cultural differences that make accurate portrayals and understandings of its large education system more difficult. Moreover, accelerated innovation and adaptation of promising educational practices have changed the higher education system so fast that it can only be accurately understood through on-the-ground analysis. The purpose of this article is to provide an informative overview by addressing eight questions. The answers to these questions reveal many of the defining contours of the recent past. The queries cover a lot of ground, including governance, participation patterns, expansion, and funding. To keep the analysis manageable, the article focuses primarily on regular universities and colleges and do not discuss other aspects of the tertiary system such as adult education, continuous education, and professional development institutions and programs. The questions include: (1) What Is the Profile of Chinese Higher Education Institutions?; (2) What Is the Role of Government Entities in Chinese Higher Education?; (3) What Are the Characteristics of Faculty at Chinese Universities?; (4) Who Are the Senior Academic Leaders at Chinese Universities?; (5) What Are the Characteristics of Students at Chinese Universities and Colleges?; (6) What Are the Employment Prospects for Chinese University Graduates?; (7) How Did China Achieve Such Rapid Scaling?; and (8) How Does China Assure Higher Education Quality?