The HUST delegation, headed by Vice President Chen Jianguo, concluded their 10-day trip to Europe starting on March 27, 2023. They visited Paris-Saclay University and Mines ParisTech in France; the University of Birmingham and Queen Mary University of London in the UK; and the Technical University of Munich in Germany. The delegation made official visits to the above universities with the aim of promoting friendship and cooperation between HUST and European universities and consolidating global partnerships.

At Paris-Saclay University, Chen Jianguo met with Sandrine Lacombe, Vice President of International Affairs of the university. During the meeting, the two sides reviewed the operation of the China-French joint undergraduate program in biological sciences and exchanged views on the expansion of all-round practical cooperation between the two universities. 

Lacombe expressed that HUST is a valued partner, and that the joint education program between the two universities has flourished and injected new momentum into the international development of the University of Paris-Saclay. She hoped that in the future, the two universities can carry out richer and more diversified teaching and research cooperation in more disciplines and produce more practical results. Chen Jianguo introduced the progress of the construction of HUST's international campus and pointed out that HUST and the University of Paris-Saclay are highly similar and complementary in terms of the disciplinary structure. Looking into the future, it is hoped that the two universities will focus on key areas such as life sciences, medicine, mathematics, and mechanics, and continue to deepen cooperation by establishing seed funds, exploring joint laboratories, and developing more exchange programs. In the exchange and dialogue session, representatives from the Office of International Affairs, School of Mechanical Science and Engineering, School of Management, and School of Life Science and Technology of the two universities further discussed the existing cooperation basis and the next cooperation initiatives. After the meeting, the delegation visited the "Plateau de Saclay", where Paris-Saclay University is located, to learn more about its attempts and explorations in building interdisciplinary clusters, promoting the integrated cooperation between industry, academia, and research, and cultivating innovative talents for the future.

At Mines ParisTech, the delegation met with the persons in charge of International Affairs and Graduate Education to discuss the renewal and development of the China-EU Institute for Clean and Renewable Energy. They exchanged views on expanding the development model of the institute, optimizing the governance system, enriching the opportunities for students to study abroad, and enhancing interaction and cooperation with industry.

At the University of Birmingham, Chen Jianguo met with Adam Tickell, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University, and Jon Frampton, Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University, and had in-depth discussions on further deepening the key partnership between the two universities and running a good undergraduate joint program in pharmacy. Adam Tickell emphasized the importance of HUST as one of their partners, pointing out that the upcoming pharmacy joint program between the two universities will be an important exploration of joint training of international talents. Chen reviewed the pragmatic achievements made by the two universities in talent training and collaborative research over the past 20 years since the partnership was established, as well as several important interactive nodes such as the Partner Day events held by the two universities and the signing of the key partnership agreement online. He stressed that the two universities should take the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the partnership as an opportunity to continue strengthening cooperation, so as to make greater contributions to the improvement of the quality of higher education in both countries.

During the visit, the two universities also held the launching ceremony of the Young Scholars’ Forum and the first joint working session of the undergraduate joint program in pharmacy. Chen presented Jon Frampton with an advisory professorship of HUST and expressed his sincere gratitude for the contribution Jon Frampton had been making in moving the partnership between the two universities forward. Scholars from the two universities in the fields of chemistry, telecommunications, and medicine had academic exchanges respectively.

At Queen Mary University of London, Chen Jianguo met with Colin Grant, Vice Principal of International Affairs of the university, to review the fruitful cooperation between the two universities since the establishment of their partnership in 2019. They reached an important consensus on deepening the key partnership between the two universities and exploring the possibility of cooperation in seed funds, summer schools, and joint training programs. Representatives from the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, the School of Electronic Information and Communications, and the School of Management of HUST respectively held discussions with the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science, the School of Physical and Chemical Sciences, and the School of Business and Management of Queen Mary University of London and explored cooperative possibilities such as the Green Communications Joint Research Center and the Intellectual Property Master's 1+1 Joint Training Program.

At the Technical University of Munich, Chen met with Harald Olk, Director of the TUM Global & Alumni Office. They reviewed the achievements of the ten-year cooperation between the two universities and further explored the possibility of cooperation in master's joint training, seed funds, and visiting scholar programs. The School of Management and the School of Mechanical Science and Engineering of HUST respectively introduced their discipline characteristics and advantages and proposed the initiative of deepening cooperation at the department and discipline levels.

The visit to its European partner universities is an important measure for HUST to actively engage with the new situation, consolidate its traditional advantages of the cooperation with Europe, and implement the university's "Global Development Strategy 2030". It is of great significance to further consolidate the exchanges and cooperation with Europe, promoting high-level Sino-foreign cooperative education, and assisting the internationalization of HUST.

Written by: Wang Jingyi

Edited by: Luo Xiaofan, Chang Wen, Peng Yumeng