From Oct 27th to 31st, the President of Shanxi University, Jia Suotang, led a delegation to visit Birmingham City University and the University of Derby, and held the first special overseas talent exchange meeting at Cambridge.

Jia Suotang (left) and the president of Birmingham Conservatoire

Birmingham City University (the original University of Central England) is one of the largest modern comprehensive universities in Britain, and its subjects include management, architecture, art, environmental science, computer, engineering, education, laws, social sciences and music, with its education and research level of art design, media and conservatoire leading the same fields among British universities. In October last year, Professor Bashir Makhoul, the vice president of Birmingham City University, led a delegation to Shanxi University and signed a cooperation agreement.

President Jia Suotang viewed the instrumental music performance by the students of Birmingham Conservatoire. After the performance, he met Professor David Saint, the president of Birmingham Conservatoire, and Professor Makhoul, the vice president of the college. They pleasantly recalled the association between the two schools and had an in-depth talk about the performance of the cooperation agreement, and also discussed the items of jointly running the Confucius Conservatoire, exchanges between students in both universities, and the mutual visit of teachers and the cooperative research in many fields. Both parties agreed to make their cooperation in detail and to start the building of the Confucius conservatoire, the communication among students and mutual visits by teachers. President Jia also visited the laboratories in the college. The interactivity between students and teachers and the focus on the training of students’ ability to do something themselves impressed the delegation.

President Jia (left) signs a memorandum of understanding with the University of Derby

President Jia describes the building history of Shanxi University at the talented people exchange meeting in Cambridge

Upon the arrival of the delegation, Professor John Coyne, the president of the University of Derby, met the delegates at the door and offered his name card printed in Chinese, showing his friendly feelings towards Shanxi University. Then President Jia had a discussion with Rod Dubrow-Marshal, vice president of University of Derby, Adrian McGillion, head of international cooperation department, and the deans from the Engineering and Technology College, Art and Design College, Computer and Mathematics College, Education College, as well as Tourism College. The leaders of the two universities introduced their schools’ basic conditions of respectively, and the dean of each college of the University of Derby at present described the advantages and characteristics of each college. They exchanged views about the cooperation in building schools and reached an important agreement. A memorandum of understanding was signed between the parties.

Talented people exchange meeting at Cambridge

Later, President Jia went to Queens’College, Cambridge, to host the first special overseas talented people exchange meeting by Shanxi University, which was strongly supported by the Cambridge League of Students and Scholars. Over 20 excellent students and visiting scholars from Cambridge, who are involved in environment, biology, medicine, engineering and other disciplines, came to attend the meeting. President Jia introduced Shanxi University’s long history, future planning and talent invitation policies.

Persons in charge of the general office, human resources department, academic affairs office, foreign affairs office and foreign language college participated in all activities and made friendly communication with relevant personnel in the British universities they visited.