Harbin Institute of Technology

Reported by: YAN Mingxing

Photographed by: FENG Jian

Translated by: DENG Ke and LU Zhixiu

Edited by: Patti Broderick

Updated: 2012-3-23

March 12th, Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) Assistant to the President XU Dianguo hosted HIT’s foreign affairs conference and declared 2012 HIT Department Globalization Year. He reviewed the 2011 foreign affairs initiatives and planned the international exchanges and collaborations for the coming year with the relevant department superintendents as well as foreign affairs officials and secretaries attending the conference. The yearlong goal is to target international projects that address departmental needs and capitalize on their strengths while honing the integration of the university-department administration system.

Vice President REN Nanqi enumerated the previous year’s foreign affairs achievements, expressing his appreciation for each department’s contribution. REN emphasized the importance of foreign affairs and proposed future initiatives. While acknowledging the global focus upon international education and praising HIT’s substantial exchange and collaboration accomplishments, he admitted that HIT still lagged behind other world-class universities and must forge ahead. REN opined that each department should identify its unique strengths to focus foreign affairs initiatives within approved university goals. He emphasized the need for even greater interdepartmental communication to contribute to HIT achieving recognition as a world-class research and teaching institution.

International Office Director FAN Hongbo reported on Accelerating Globalization and Promoting Department Effectiveness, recounting HIT’s 2011 foreign affairs initiatives while introducing current priorities and strategies. International Student Center (ISC) Deputy Director LI Xiaohong delivered a report on Increasing the Quantity and Enhancing the Diversity of International Students in order to Promote Sustainable International Student Education. She presented HIT’s international student education achievements and future challenges.

In 2011, 927 HIT teachers and 1,060 students visited 50 countries and regions. These included 668 people attending international conferences, 152 collaborating in research, and 854 studying abroad. For the first time ever, the number of students going abroad surpassed teachers. Undergraduate participation increased remarkably to 572, accounting for 12.9% of the total students admitted that year. The State-Sponsored Scholarship Program for Graduate Students financed 253 HIT students, ranking HIT as the top Chinese sender for the fourth consecutive year. Students studying in world-class universities increased significantly, among which 235 entered universities rated within the world’s top 100. HIT attracted 1,584 foreign students from 88 countries of whom 681 (or 43%) were degree seeking students. In 2012, China initiated the State-sponsored Study Abroad Plan for Outstanding Undergraduates. 46 HIT students from 11 programs were approved to study abroad for 6 months to one year, ranking HIT’s approval rate as the highest in China.

HIT welcomed 1,914 overseas visitors in 2011 including 64 university-level delegations. 25 interuniversity memoranda of understanding and 26 interuniversity cooperative agreements were signed. HIT participated in 21 activities sponsored by international higher education organizations and bilateral/multilateral education forums. HIT’s International Fund financed 308 foreign scholars, 1,632 lectures, 26 international conferences and seminars as well as 303 HIT teacher-presented papers at first-rate international academic conferences. 2011 also witnessed a breakthrough in exchange and collaboration with Russia with the founding of a cooperative center and the establishment of a joint non-governmental organization. In February the HIT Sino-Russian Talent Exchange and Research Cooperation Center was approved as an initiative of the Sino-Russian Committee on Cooperation in the Humanities and in March HIT and Bauman Moscow State Technical University played lead roles in establishing The Association of Sino-Russian Technical Universities (ASRTU), with fifteen leading Chinese and fifteen Russian technical universities.

The conference stressed pursuing the Chinese maxim to capitalize on HIT’s unique strengths and emulate others’ successes in order to minimize any perceived weakness in HIT. In the coming year, HIT’s international exchange and collaborations will continue to support HIT's central tasks; improve teaching, scientific research and education; promote teacher and student initiatives, and optimize each school’s (department’s) global influence.

HIT will fully support international cooperation programs that address schools' (departments') needs. A university-department administration system will be established based on the "school (department) international competitiveness index system". The International Fund is restricted to international exchange and cooperation programs targeting specific schools (departments) that are most likely to further HIT’s international renown and influence as a world-class institution of higher education and research.

GENG Lin, School of Material Science and Engineering Party Committee Secretary, and LENG Hong, School of Architecture Vice Dean, shared their schools' international exchange and collaboration experiences, achievements, and areas for improvement as models.