Delegation from the Northern Consortium of the United Kingdom visited our university

On the morning of 17 April, President Ding Xiaodong, Chair of the SBC Management Council, met with Stuart Smith, Chief Executive Officer of the Northern Consortium of the United Kingdom (NCUK). Vice President Cai Yonglian, Dean of SBC, and heads of Party and President Office, International Affairs Office, the Sino-British College, other relevant leadership and 4 NCUK colleagues attended the meeting. The meeting was hosted by Cai Yonglian.
On behalf of USST, Ding Xiaodong warmly welcomed the delegation. He said that USST, one of the earliest institutions of higher education in mainland China to set up international cooperative programmes, had established cooperative relations with more than 190 institutions of higher education and research in 37 countries and regions, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Japan, Australia and Ireland. The Sino-British College was co-established by USST and nine north of England universities in the NCUK consortium in 2006 including University of Leeds and University of Sheffield in the form of 1-to-N consortium model. Since then, the bond between SBC and NCUK has become further and further. In recent years, the College has made new achievements in various aspects, indispensably, with great support from NCUK. Ding hoped that both parties will further their connection and make more accomplishments in talent development, international accreditations and high-level Chinese-foreign collaborative programmes.
Stuart Smith expressed his gratitude for the warm reception by USST and highly recognised the achievements and contributions USST had made in talent cultivation and promoting economic and social development. He said that this visit was to establish a long-term relationship with the School, deeper and more comprehensive and introduced the development strategy plan and digital educational platform for the next five years. He said that NCUK will continue to support the development of USST and SBC by promoting deeper exchanges and cooperation in talent development, academic exchanges, degree programmes and other aspects.
This afternoon, the delegation from the Northern Consortium of the United Kingdom visited SBC. Cai Yonglian, Vice President of USST, Dean of SBC welcomed the NCUK delegation on Fuxing Road campus and held a meeting on further cooperation and exchanges. Li Yan, Secretary of the Party Committee of SBC; Professor Shan Yanguang, Vice Dean of SBC, Interim Principal of SBC; Cai Hui, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Associate Dean of SBC were present.
Cai Yonglian said SBC's development could not be achieved without care and support from NCUK, which we were grateful for. And we hoped that SBC will further improve the quality of international education and expand connections with international institutes and enterprises with our partner NCUK’s international influence.
Shan Yanguang briefly introduced SBC’s latest development and achievements, degree programmes, management structure, academic staff, international cooperation and outstanding students and alumni. He hoped that both parties will carry out deeper exchanges in more fields.
Stuart Smith really appreciated the warm reception by USST and SBC. He said that NCUK always attached great importance to the cooperation and communication with USST and SBC and hoped both sides will provide more opportunities for international communication and development in academic exchanges, faculty visits, student enrolment, overseas services and support for international students, etc.
Stuart Smith and 4 NCUK colleagues had a discussion with SBC academic programme leaders, heads of administration departments on educational reform, challenges and future directions.
After the meeting, the NCUK delegation visited Fuxing Road Campus History Museum and Library.

President Ding Xiaodong, Chair of the SBC Management Council, delivered a speech

Stuart Smith, Chief Executive Officer of NCUK delivered a speech