On October 25, a delegation from Auckland University of Technology (AUT), including Vice-Chancellor Guy Littlefair, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Design and Creative Technologies Yvonne Chan Cashmore, and Director of International Admissions William Ho, visited our university. The visit focused on strengthening the partnership between the two universities and discussing the establishment of a joint Sino-foreign educational institution. President Xu Jiangrong and Vice President Wang Binrui attended the meeting.
Before the meeting, President Xu warmly welcomed the guests in the reception hall on the first floor of Wenting Hall, where both sides exchanged gifts.
President Xu reflected on the history of collaboration between the university and Auckland University of Technology, noting that AUT is one of our longest-standing partners. Since the joint undergraduate program in Computer Science and Technology began in 2011, nearly a thousand students have graduated. The approval of the Data Analytics master’s program in April marks a new milestone in our partnership, with the first cohort of 40 students fully enrolled, showcasing AUT’s global reputation and influence. President Xu also provided updates on the progress of the task force established in September to advance the application for a joint Sino-foreign educational institution. He expressed hope that both universities will continue to build on their experiences from these joint programs, accelerate the application process, and ensure that their decade-long collaboration bears even more fruitful results.
Guy Littlefair expressed his gratitude for the warm reception and thoughtful arrangements, praising the fruitful outcomes of the decade-long collaboration between the two universities and congratulating the successful first enrollment of the newly approved master’s program. He noted that AUT recently established a task force to work closely with China Jiliang University’s task force on applying for a joint educational institution, focusing on course alignment, student management, teaching facilities, and laboratory equipment.
The director of the International Exchange and Cooperation Office provided a detailed overview of the joint management committee structure for the collaborative institution, outlining the roles and responsibilities of both parties, as well as the arrangements for teaching resources, faculty, laboratory facilities, and student management. The representatives engaged in candid and in-depth discussions on the application requirements and potential challenges, further strengthening their confidence in successfully establishing the joint educational institution.
After the meeting, the delegation paid a visit to the specialized laboratories and the Yifu Metrology Museum at CJLU.
This visit by the Auckland University of Technology delegation marks their first visit to our university since the pandemic. It also represents a concrete step toward implementing the agreement reached during our university's delegation visit to AUT in August to establish a joint educational institution. Through discussions and on-site inspections, the delegation gained a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of our university, advancing the process of establishing the joint institution and contributing to the accelerated development of our internationalization efforts.
