Third International Partners Day Held in CUHK-Shenzhen
On November 26th, the third International Partners Day was held in the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen. Representatives from 64 international partner universities and hundreds of faculty and students were gathered via the online platform, witnessing its opening ceremony as well as the launch of a series of overseas study programs.
International partners invited included the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Yale University, University of California, Berkeley, Columbia University, University of Michigan, Australian National University, University of Melbourne, National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University, University of Toronto, and other world-renowned universities.
In the opening ceremony, Prof. Shiping Zhu, Vice President of the CUHK-Shenzhen waved at the web-cam to send his regards to the partners from 18 countries and regions. In his welcome speech, he introduced the fruitful achievements of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone over the past 40 years, saying, "Since it’s settling in Shenzhen in 2014, the University has made remarkable achievements relying on the city's rapid development. At present, the University has five colleges: the School of Management and Economics, the School of Science and Engineering, the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, the School of Life and Health Sciences, and the School of Data Science, while the construction of the School of Medicine and the School of Music has started and plans to start enrolling students in 2021."
Commenting on the University’s internationalization features, President Zhu said, "Since the establishment, CUHK-Shenzhen has been committed to building a high-end international exchange platform and cultivating international talents with global perspectives. Up to now, the number of overseas partner institutions that have carried out substantive cooperation projects has reached 108, and there are more than 180 international cooperation projects in 29 countries and regions around the world, providing students with rich and diversified choices for international education." Finally, President Zhu, on behalf of the school, warmly welcomed the partners to visit the beautiful city of Shenzhen in the future.
Medical School of the University of Michigan and CUHK-Shenzhen have been collaborating on the bachelor-master combined degree program since 2017, and the program director, Professor Brian Athey, took the time to connect with us at 3:00 a.m. Michigan time to deliver the opening address.
“CUHK-Shenzhen is a high-level international research university and has a close relationship with the University of Michigan," he said. Since the launch of the 3+2 bachelor-master program in 2017, 13 CUHK-Shenzhen students have been admitted and are now in the master’s and doctoral programs. The outstanding language skills and academic performance of the students from CUHK-Shenzhen are highly valued by the professors at the University of Michigan."
Professor Athey is confident that the cooperation will continue to expand and deepen, benefiting more outstanding students of the CUHK-Shenzhen.
Next, Mr. Rob Igglesden, Director of International Cooperation Programs at London School of Economics and Political Science, and Ms. Amina Dante, Director of Exchange Programs at Kwansei Gakuin University, sent a video message welcoming the CUHK-Shenzhen students.
Following the opening ceremony was the seminar. Dr. Lu Yuchen, a representative from the University of Oxford, commenced the first session by vividly introducing the development of the University of Oxford and its living environment to students and faculty. He focused on the Oxford Visiting Student Program (VSP) and short-term programs and answered students' questions.
During the two-day event on November 20 and 21, 98 representatives from 64 partner universities held 70 presentations, interacting with students and providing them with face-to-face consultation on their overseas study plans.
International Partners Day is an annual event for international exchange at CUHK-Shenzhen. Every autumn of the year, representatives of partner institutions from around the world gather in Shenzhen to interact with students and faculty. Even though it was changed to an online event due to the impact of the epidemic of this year, thousands of students still showed their enthusiasm to participate.
Translated by Hedy Hu, HSS
