Beijing, 10th October 2024 (BISTU)--- President Guo Fu met with EPSI delegation headed by Johan Verstraete, Directeur Général des écoles EPSI Ecole Privée des Sciences Informatiques (EPSI) on 10th October 2024 at Shahe Campus. Both institutions signed the agreement of cooperation, with signing ceremony being hosted by Vice President Xiao Zhisong.

On the signing ceremony, President Guo Fu offered an introduction to latest development progresses of the University. He looked forward to working with EPSI in globalized industry-education integration for talent cultivation. This year marked the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France. BISTU hoped to conduct in-depth collaboration with EPSI. Guo Fu pointed out that the two institutions find agreement with each other in a number of areas, i.e., the education feature in information technology, academic disciplines, philosophies of talent cultivation, etc., indicating a great future of collaboration. The Agreement on undergraduate plus postgraduate programs is the very first agreement for BISTU to sign with French institutions, adding a touch of color to Sino-French educational cooperation. Guo Fu extended cordial invitation to EPSI and FIGS Education as a response to President Xi Jinping’s proposal on hosting more than 10,000 French students in the next three years and doubling the number of European youth exchanges in China.

Johan Verstraete expressed thanks to the warm reception. The visit has deepened his understanding of BISTU’s strengths and educational features and he looked forward to future cooperation. He pointed out that both EPSI and FIGS Education attached great importance to the collaboration with BISTU. It was hoped that both institutions would share educational resources for future development. EPSI and FIGS Education would love to send students to BISTU and also extend warm welcome to BISTU students who would like to study in France.

A 3+1+1 agreement on bachelor to master program in Data Science and Big Data Technology was officially signed. Students enrolled in the program will be able to obtain a bachelor degree from BISTU and a master degree in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science from EPSI upon successful completion of studies.

Xiao Zhisong expressed that the agreement signed is a substantial progress the two institutions have made since BISTU visited EPSI. It is another landmark in educational globalization at BISTU. Following his introduction to industry-education integration at the University, he commented that collaboration between the two institutions would lay a solid foundation for cultivation of high-quality talents of applied learning.

Both institutions shared practices and experiences in school-enterprise cooperation and industry-education integration. In-depth discussions were conducted on digital transformation for small and medium-sized enterprises, globalized industry-education integration, studying in China, etc.

The EPSI delegation members included Fabien Montagne, Director of National Programs, Marc Castagnet, Board Member of FIGS Education, and officers of EPSI China Office. The meeting and signing ceremony were joined by directors and deans of International Cooperation Department, International Education School, and School of Computer Science.