On May 17th, over 20 university leaders at home and abroad attended the International Forum on Training Excellent Talents & Enhancing Social Contribution held at Beijing Conference Centre. 

This forum was hosted by BISTU and co-sponsored by the University League for “Beijing’s Excellent Engineers Education Plan”, Higher Engineering Education Research Center of Beijing and Administration Committee of Zhongguancun Science Park, centering on universities’ centric tasks of talent training, scientific research and social service and seeking for the ways and methods to train excellent engineering and management talents with the focus on the comprehensive improvement in the quality of talent training. Its three major topics include the training of excellent engineering and management talents; the enhancement of universities’ social contribution through the integration of production, teaching and research; the innovation in university teaching management.  

Presidents or renowned educators from BISTU’S partners at home and abroad were invited as speakers at the Forum. Universities that excel at training talent through industry-academy collaboration and their corporate partners also shared their experience and interacted with the audiences. 

Liu Gonghui, President of BISTU, presided over the opening ceremony. Zheng Junli, Director of Board of School Administration, extended a warm welcome to all the leaders and guests present and gave an overall introduction to BISTU. Other speakers at the opening ceremony were Ciarán Ó Catháin (President of Athlone Institute of Technology of Ireland), Chung-Jen Chin (President of Taiwan Chaoyang University of Technology), Zhang Xinxin (President of University of Science and Technology Beijing), Ji Yichao (student from School of Computer Science of BISTU ), Zhang Jingdong (President of Guo’ao Controlling Company Limited), Wang Rufang (Deputy Director of Administration Committee of Zhongguancun Science Park) and Jiang Peimin (Chief of the Beijing Municipal Education Commission). 

Entrepreneurship was stressed in Prof. Ciarán Ó Catháin’s speech, along with the efforts made by Athlone Institute of Technology to train talents with entrepreneurship. Prof. Chung-Jen Chin shared his opinions on some issues concerning higher education management. Prof. Zhang Xinxin expressed his hope that USTB and BISTU will make joint efforts towards realizing “China Dream”.  

On behalf of BISTU’s students, Ji Yichao said the university had creatively designed a specific talent-training program for those top students in computer science and technology like him, which met the demands of their growth and development and effectively drove their creativity and entrepreneurship.  

As an alumnus of BISTU, Mr. Zhang Jingdong recalled his school days 20 years ago and expressed his gratitude to Alma Mater. Furthermore, he talked about the development ideas of Guo’ao Group in the post-Olympic Period. 

Mr. Wang Rufang said Training Excellent Talents & Enhancing Social Contribution was the requirement of the times for universities and businesses and in the same time an important avenue to realizing their own value. He was also very glad to see the bright prospects of the training of excellent talents in Ji Yichao. 

Mr. Jiang Peiming recognized BISTU’s contributions to the construction and development of the capital city. He said that this international forum reflected BISTU’s opening-up schooling philosophy and that he wanted to see more communications between universities at home and abroad, in a bid to enhance universities’ standards of teaching and research and their ability to train excellent talents.  

The main forum kicked off after the opening ceremony.