Beijing, 29^th December 2023 (BISTU)--- At the time of waving farewell to the fruitful 2023 and greeting the magnificent prospects in 2024, we are happy with the harvests, we review the past successes and failures, and we look to the future to open a new chapter of development. The year 2023 witnessed that BISTU, under the leadership of CPC BISTU Committee and guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, has worked diligently towards our goal of high quality development and has been following the principle of fostering virtue through education. All BISTUers are witnesses and builders of our achievements! Here we present eight key words to bring readers back to the endeavor of BISTUers in 2023! 

 Navigation 

A new chapter under the Party’s leadership. The past year saw us learn and implement the philosophies of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and the spirit of the 20^th CPC National Congress in an earnest manner. With emphasis on thematic education, we are marching forward with our responsibility in education. We spare no efforts to strengthening educational quality, effectiveness of learning, and service for students and faculties with integration of “diligence” and “honor”. The Party’s leadership has been comprehensively strengthened and the mechanism of fostering virtue education constantly perfected. It is in 2023 that BISTU established a revolutionary pilot village in Dazhuangke Town and a Village-based Beijing Sci-tech Yard (the first yard established by non-agricultural institutions). The University has saw 26 faculties promoted to middle-level carders, 39 carders exchanging posts, and over 140 carders registered in grassroots units. Young faculties took secondment posts in Xinjiang for training and growth purposes and students’ counselors contributed their time and energy to halls of residence…… Guided by the Party, BISTUers are striding forward towards the objective of building a high level university with distinctive feature in information technology.  

 Rejuvenation 

Rejuvenation of BISTU campus and campus culture. Completion of Shahe Campus in 2023 saw the new landmark---University Library--- and Dream Theatre at Student Development Center. BISTU VI--- the visual identity system--- has been optimized and updated. Official website of the University took a new look. Among a variety of popular creative cultural products, BISRabbit was officially confirmed as our campus mascot. Unconscious payment, intelligent delivery, and intelligent classrooms were extensively applied. We are seeing upgraded informationization and digitization and constant enhancement of university governance. A campus which is best suitable for teaching, learning, research, and living has been built here! Desire of BISTUers for a better life coupled with their unremitting efforts has become a shining driving force in the course of pursuing our dreams and meeting challenges.  

Blooming 

Students blooming in the New Era. The year 2023 saw that 4,497 new students enrolled with BISTU. Over 2,000 faculties and students in 146 teams conducted social practices in summer holiday. They have travelled more than 260 thousand kilometers during the surveys and have experienced the beauty of China. Award podiums everywhere witnessed BISTUers with honors. Communications 2001, a class of BISTU, has been granted the honor of “Top Ten Classes of Beijing-based Universities”. In addition to outstanding services and contributions of over a thousand student-volunteers in various events, 40 students joined the army to defend our nation. “One Book One Community: Read, Share and Discover” offered students precious opportunities of learning from and exchanging with peers. The concert on that summer night symbolized our dreams, hope, romance, and youth. In all, BISTU students have won 812 awards of provincial or higher level. Salary of BISTU graduates ranked the 38^th among all higher educational institutions of China. It should be noted that BISTU students have won gold medals in dancing festivals and drama festivals for Beijing college students. These outstanding achievements are perfect proof for resolution and perseverance of BISTUers.  

 Warmth 

Services with warmth for faculties and students. The year 2023 witnessed our endeavors in serving faculties and students heart and soul. With regime warmth and humanistic care, more and more students and faculties acquired the sense of achievements, the sense of happiness, and the sense of honor. In September we warmly greeted new students and in December we provided care and support for students attending entrance examination to postgraduate education. Students felt comfortable, parents felt assured, and the whole society felt the warmth. We have successfully built a “guaranteed satisfactory solution system”, a “one-stop” service hall for students, a baby care lounge, charging piles, shuttle buses to subway stations, free lunch for students attending entrance examination to postgraduate education, down jacket for those in need, interim dormitories for faculties…… All these seemingly trivial things done for students bring warmth to their life and make them unperturbed in crucial moments of their life. Teachers now have comfortable places to relax and prepare for the next lecture. Conveniences online and care offline are both telling the story of warmth, which makes a glowing campus of BISTU even in the chilling winter.  

 Integration 

  Mutual integration and mutual empowerment for prosperity. The year 2023 witnessed our efforts in integrating into municipal development pattern and exploring new paradigms of school-local government integration. We have built a new-type platform for sensor verification, established a field teaching base of industry-school integration, jointly constructed a lab of intelligent security, joined “N Plus” Party Building and Innovation League of China Mobile International Information Port, contributed to “Quality development plan of BeiDou”, and set up Data Intelligence Innovation R&D Base of State Key Laboratory of Media Convergence Production Technology and Systems while contributing to the Central Axis of Beijing’s application for World Heritage. Promoting mutual development and sharing resources, we have achieved in-depth integration of politics, industries, learning, research, and application and two-bound empowerment between cities and universities. The past 86 years history now encourages us to march forward to an even brighter future.  

 Cohesion 

Cohesion as the power for sailing forward. The year 2023 saw openness, inclusiveness, and initiative of BISTU in working with all circles of our society for high quality development. Senior administrators of the University have led teams to visit scores of higher educational institutions in a dozen of provinces. Frequent visits to enterprises conducted by senior administrators, school deans and secretaries, and department chairs have strengthened cooperation and exchange between the university and industries. Alumni resources have been fully utilized to empower high quality development at BISTU. We have unveiled Nansha Photon Sensing Technology Institute and sponsored and organized various academic summits to contribute to future development of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. We have built bridges of exchange and communication for innovation and civilization via a series of events, i.e., 11th China Beijing International Magic Carnival and World University Magic Exchange Conference, the commendation meeting for social practices of Beijing-based university students, robotics competition for North China five provinces, aesthetics forum for engineering universities of China, etc. With the power of cohesion, BISTUers have witnessed miracles and the shining image of the University.  

 Leap 

Leaps in education. Rooted in Beijing, BISTUers aim at serving our nation whole-heartedly and have made outstanding achievements in teaching, research, and academic discipline construction. The University has been approved of MOE Key Lab (B category) and a postdoctoral mobile station, on top of 1 first prize of MOE technological invention (the first author) and 2 second prizes of Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Progress Award. The year 2023 saw 1 BISTU faculty honored as a leading talent of National High-Level Talents Special Support Program, 1 honored as Beijing Scholar, and 8 ranked top 2% scientists of the world. Core competitiveness of academic disciplines centering on information technology has been enhanced, which would provide substantial support for future application for new doctoral programs. Six academic disciplines of BISTU were listed on “Shanghai Ranking the Best Academic Disciplines of China in 2023”, with Instrumentation Science leaping from the 21^st to the 14^th. Master of Translation were approved, indicating that all BISTU schools are now qualified to award master-level degrees. New talent cultivation model has been established and reform of talent cultivation for preeminence class and diligence and honor experiment class has been deepened. A series of achievements indicated the growing strengths of undergraduate education: newly-added 7 state-level first-class modules, 2 honored as preeminent teachers of Beijing, 25 teaching achievements wining municipal awards of education, 3 academic programs passing accreditation of China Engineering Education Accreditation Association (CEEAA), and 8 academic programs inclusive of Communications Engineering ranking national top 10%. Educational features of the University and innovation competence of students have been strengthened in a full-ranged manner. We will keep working diligently to make our contributions to building a nation of education.  

 Glory 

Glories in fostering virtue through education. The past year has witnessed us seizing opportunities to promote innovation, meet with challenges, and cope with changes. Desires of BISTUers for a better life and their ambitions for a greater future have been organically embedded in the course of building a high level university with distinctive feature in information technology. We have made great progresses in a number of aspects: accredited as a civilized campus, passing the verification of green development, approved as one of the first cohort of intelligent campuses, etc. With enhanced party building, organizational power of young people is increasingly strong and they have won one after another honors: outstanding teams (individuals) of social practices, advanced units for social practices (municipality-supervised universities), first prize winner of revolutionary 1+1 event among Beijing-based universities, one of the ten model projects for students’ services (one-stop service hall), and being selected as a member of national lecturer group for the spirit of the Zunyi Meeting. Faculties of the University are shining with their achievements and contributions: 1 winning the municipal-level award of ethnic unity and progress, 1 awarded Capital Labor Medal, 1 honored as the Most Beautiful Women Strivers of Beijing, 7 honored as Pioneers of Education in Beijing…… These glories are vivid footnotes for the past year and the mirror for the great future that each BISTUer is expecting.  

From a historical perspective, all great achievements are based on previous efforts and wisdom. We would like to extend the most sincere gratitude to one after another generation of BISTU builders! Looking to the future, we would be centering on the principle of “establishing a better image, strengthening the cohesion, providing better service, and boosting development” to embark on the new journey in 2024!