On the morning of September 25, a symposium on jointly establishing a Chinese-foreign cooperative educational institution with a separate legal entity between Chengdu University (CDU) and Oxford Brookes University (OBU) was held at Conference Room A3025 of the College of Chinese & ASEAN Arts. Peng Xiaolin, Member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and Vice President of CDU chaired the symposium. Representatives from OBU, including Vice-Chancellor Alistair Fitt and Pro Vice-Chancellors Joseph Tah and Tim Vorley, attended the meeting. On the basis of the MoU signed in July this year, the two parties engaged in a comprehensive and detailed discussion regarding their joint application for establishing Chengdu Oxford Brookes Vocational and Technical College (hereinafter referred to as "the College").
Vice-Chancellor Alistair Fitt provided a comprehensive overview of OBU's history, current development, and the vision of OBU’s internationalization. He said that OBU values greatly its collaboration with China and CDU is a crucial partner of OBU. The two universities will strengthen in-depth cooperation in terms of curriculum, faculty, and scientific research, through the implementation of projects such as the educational institution with a separate legal entity.
Vice President Peng highly praised the development achievements of OBU and introduced the regional advantages and development vision of Chengdu City, the history, positioning, and internationalization strategy of CDU. She mentioned that the College is strongly supported by the Chengdu Municipal People's Government and Chengdu Municipal Bureau of Education. The project, which was selected in 2021 as one of the 14th Five-Year Plan for the Establishment of Higher Education Institutions in Sichuan Province and reported to the Ministry of Education for approval, is an an important part of CDU's international development.
Du Jie, Director of the Office of International Cooperation and Exchange at CDU presented in detail the preparations, progress plan, significance, and initial progress of the project as well as the major framework and selection, student development path, and future promotion plan of the College.
Both parties exchanged perspectives on the project's construction details, thoroughly discussed the preliminary structure, major framework, and development vision of the College, and reached a consensus. Vice President Peng proposed that the project of the College should focus closely on the development of Chengdu City and region, cutting-edge science and technology, and high-quality talent cultivation to support the modern industrial system. Vice-Chancellor Alistair Fitt commended the development of CDU and expressed gratitude for CDU's efforts in preparing the project. He also expressed confidence in the preparatory work for the project.
Professor Donald Ridley, Associate Dean of Strategy and Development of the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, and Dr. Sara Hannam, Director of Global Partnerships at OBU as well as relevant heads of Offices of International Cooperation and Exchange and Development Planning at CDU attended the meeting.
Founded in 1865, Oxford Brookes University is renowned for practical application innovation and problem-solving for various industries. It has been honored with the Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education. It is ranked 413th in the 2024 QS World University Ranking, 41st in the United Kingdom, and among the top 10 universities in the southeast of the United Kingdom according to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024. With 19 world-class disciplines and in the same city as University of Oxford, it is often referred to as the "Little Oxford" of the United Kingdom.
