New Partnership

Sun Yat-sen UniversityA recent ceremony held in Guangzhou, China celebrated the launch of the Joint Institute of Engineering (JIE), a new joint graduate engineering program being developed by Carnegie Mellon University and China's Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU).

And as a complement program of the JIE, CMU and SYSU officially launched the Shunde International Joint Research Institute (JRI) with Shunde District, Foshan City.

"We are honored to partner with Sun Yat-sen University, as its distinguished history and educational strengths make it one of China's leading institutions," said CMU President Jared L. Cohon.

"We look forward to bringing CMU's strengths in innovation, technology and creative problem solving to the institute, which we hope will be the beginning of a long and productive collaboration between our two universities."

SYSU President Xu Ningsheng said they selected CMU because its great academic and research reputation is well suited to China's vision of transitioning its economy from mass labor to technology-driven initiatives, as well as fostering future technology leaders with an innovative and entrepreneurial mindset.

The mission of the JIE is to further world-class education in engineering and perform cutting-edge research in China.

"This is a great opportunity for Carnegie Mellon to expand on its global presence. The education and research program will focus on many important areas so endemic to Carnegie Mellon to help build a top-notch engineering program in China," said Jimmy Zhu, the ABB Professor of Engineering and head of CMU's Data Storage System Center (DSSC), who is co-heading the new JIE.

The SYSU community is excited to explore a new and effective model for engineering education with CMU.

"We hope that the future success of the JIE will form a new effective way in engineering education for SYSU," said Professor Li Wenjun, the assistant to the president of SYSU who will co-head the JIE effort with Zhu.

SYSU and its local community are also expecting that the JIE and JRI will help local research communities and industries to carry out cutting-edge research and product development, solving the practical engineering problems that will help lead local industry improvement.

SYSU is located about 100 miles northeast of important trade and economic centers like Hong Kong and Macau, giving it access to the Asia-Pacific region's most vital business hubs.

"We see this joint institute as a way to enhance engineering education in China, develop innovative engineering education programs and educate tomorrow's leaders," said Vijayakumar Bhagavatula, interim dean of CMU's College of Engineering.

Related Links: Read More | Sun Yat-sen University | College of Engineering | CMU's Global Presence


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