As part of an ambitious 10-year programme to overhaul and improve its entire education structure, China is currently engaged in developing, reforming and opening up its higher education sector. The stated aims are to increase access, increase resourcing, improve outcomes and lessen direct official interference. Underpinning the programme are aspects of Confucian philosophy as well as Communist Party of China ordinances. Confucian thought however, is far from intractable and how much it has been altered to suit the political perspective is a matter of contention. This paper argues that the term Confucian heritage as it has been applied to governance in higher education is too unstable to inform the analysis of progress and potential in Chinese higher education reform in any meaningful way. Instead, it serves the more civic purpose of providing a popular reference point for China's national and international ambitions in the sector.