Beijing, 18th October 2023 (BISTU)--- “I really hope that I could return to my alma mater during next business trip to China. I want to take a look at the place where I have enjoyed my life and learning and to meet the teachers and schoolmates who have been together with me for laughter and for tears in those days.” Said Ufkum Sonuk (Chinese name: Wu Feng), a Turkish alumnus enrolled in BA International Economics and Trade in 2020 at BISTU, when being interviewed.  

 Ufkum Sonuk attending 2023 China Clean Expo 

 The year 2023 marked the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative. BISTU has been providing active responses to the Initiative by establishing cooperative relationship with 28 higher educational institutions in nine countries along the belt and road and educating one after another cohort of international students who truly understand China, be are friendly with China, and have deep love for China. Wu Feng is one of these outstanding alumni.  

According to the introduction offered by faculties of International Education School, Wu Feng has been a passionate student, studied diligently, and taken part in various activities organized by the School. After graduation, he chose to work in Star, a Turkish company based in Istanbul on international business. Now he has become a partner and Chief Operation Officer of the Company. The professional cleaning product his company produced have been sold in 69 countries, including the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Swiss, China, Singapore, Malaysia, etc.   

Expanding “Friend Circle” to seek new growth for international cooperation 

The past ten years have seen BISTU’s efforts in expanding “friend circle” incorporating countries along the belt and road. The University has successively joined four consortiums under the Belt and Road Initiative, i.e., the Belt and Road Sino-Polish University Consortium, China-Indonesia University Consortium, China-ASEAN Alliance of Universities for Electronic Information Innovation of CAIH, and China-Thailand Higher Education Consortium, and made contributions to development of these consortiums while seeking opportunities for new growth in respect of the Belt and Road Initiative.  

 BISTU joining Sino-Polish University Consortium 

 BISTU students attending the summer campus of Sino-Polish University Consortium 

 Russian universities visiting BISTU 

Academic cooperation and student exchange program with Ben-Gurion University of the Negev of Israel, started in 2015, was followed by the strategic agreement signing in September 2017, symbolizing an all-round cooperation between the two institutions. Renowned scholars of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have been invited to BISTU as honorary professors to hold academic seminars and conduct joint-research at International Laboratory for Advanced Photonics and Electronics. For four successive years from 2016 to 2019, BISTU students were invited and offered full-scholarship by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev to attend a summer program on “data mining and business intelligence with network security applications”. As of today, 34 BISTU postgraduate students have attended the summer program.  

 BISTU faculties and students at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev 

 Summer program held at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev 

In December 2019, BISTU and University College of Yayasan Pahang (UCYP) established educational cooperation links, followed by jointly-held international conferences on information technology and society and on business, management, administration, and governance. Both institutions formally signed 2+2 joint-running agreement on Business Administration in July 2023 based on full course mapping and negotiations. UCYP students, upon successful completion of two years’ learning, could apply to study with BISTU for two years. Qualified students would be awarded bachelor’s degree by BISTU. The agreement would encourage Malaysian students to study at BISTU, nurture more globalized talents with advanced skills and understanding of cultures of China and Malaysia, strengthen the friendship between the two countries, and contribute to building a shared future for mankind.  

 Agreement signed with University College of Yayasan Pahang 

Enhancing understanding and exchange in “going global” 

Aiming at broadening international horizon of students and strengthening their understanding of countries along the belt and road, BISTU organized the Belt and Road Vietnam Academic Visit in 2018 and 2019 to Vietnam National University, Hanoi. In all, 47 BISTU students attended the program. It greatly broadened their international horizon and offered them a real-life experience of the active influence of the Belt and Road Initiative on countries along the belt and road. Also 40 students attended the online practice program on modeling and data analysis run by National University of Singapore in 2012. The past five years have witnessed 123 students attending cooperation and exchange programs conducted by or in countries along the belt and road.  

 The Belt and Road academic visit group in Vietnam 

The University took initiative in implementing the guidelines of Central Government and Beijing Municipality in educational opening-up and the requirement of advancing educational cooperation for the Belt and Road Initiative. Aiming at “studying at BISTU”, admissions have been publicized with focus on countries and regions along the belt and road. As of now, international students at BISTU are over 20 countries along the belt and road, including Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Turkey, Yemen, Pakistan, etc. And in 2018, BISTU was approved of Forbidden Scholarship of Beijing Municipal National Talent Cultivation Project, which provided support for 16 postgraduate students from countries along the belt and road to study with BISTU.  

Cultivation of globalized talents in a holistic manner 

The University set a module “Cultural Knowledge on the Belt and Road” for international students, aiming to make them understanding the origin, major content, and cultures concerning the Belt and Road Initiative and to enhance their understanding of cultural traditions and values in countries along the belt and road. It has motivated students to become supporters, contributors, and builders of the Belt and Road Initiative. With positive feedbacks from all students, the module has become one of the key culture-related modules of International Education School.  

The academic strengths in information technology and management at the School were brought into full play, i.e., ten program-based fundamental modules, specialty modules, and Chinese culture-based modules were established. They have helped substantially in nurturing globalized talents in technology and management with sufficient knowledge in information technology and sound understanding of management and Chinese culture for countries along the belt and road.  

The student-centered management model at School of International Education featured a whole-process service for learning and living at BISTU. Facing with the sudden attack of covid-19, the School has managed to safeguard safety and health of international students. During covid quarantine period, all international students were safe and sound. Additionally, BISTU was granted the municipal Belt and Road scholarship, which has helped 96 students from countries and regions along the belt and road.  

Various on-venue and on-line activities have been organized and held to enhance the sense of belonging and the sense of honor of international students who have made outstanding performances in various competitions. BISTU won a bronze medal in “Sunshine Sports Games for International Students in China” organized by Beijing Municipal Education Commission in June 2018--- competing with 17 universities, i.e., Beijing Institute of Technology, Beihang University, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing Sport University, Beijing Language and Culture University, etc.--- and was selected as one of the representative teams to attend the Northeast Section of the Competition. Moreover, BISTU international students won the gold medal of 2021 Campus Orienteering Championship for International Students in Beijing held on 9th June 2021 at China University of Geosciences Beijing.  

The University would continue to seize opportunities and lay focus on cultivation of globalized talents. Constant efforts would be contributed to resources, cooperation, team building, mechanism performance, and reputation enhancement to achieve high quality development in educational globalization.