PEKING University officially opened its first overseas campus just outside Oxford on Sunday.
The opening ceremony at Boars Hill, Oxfordshire, was attended by 400 scholars, students, and representatives from China and the United Kingdom.
Founded in 1898, Peking University was originally known as the Imperial University of Peking before it adopted its present name in 1912. It was the first national university covering comprehensive disciplines in China, and has been the nation’s leading institution of higher education since it was established.
The opening was part of a three-day event themed “Integrity creativity futurity,” which started Friday and also featured a symposium and a Peking University history exhibition.
“Today, we stand in the U.K. campus of Peking University, in a sign that the internationalization of the university has entered a new stage,” said Lin Jianhua, president of Peking University.
“To become a great university, we need to have a more open attitude to participate in international cooperation.”
Liu Xiaoming, China’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, said Peking University HSBC Business School U.K. campus is a new platform from which to tell China’s story.
“China today has much more to offer than merely kung fu, Chinese food, lion dance. There still is a great more to do to tell the China story. Peking University HSBC Business School U.K. campus is an excellent platform for this.”
Liu said a good university is a symbol of the national spirit and helps build the cultural identity of a nation. “Peking University is such a university that China is proud of,” he said.
The business school was founded in 2004 to advance Peking University’s involvement in global economics, finance, and management research.
The campus, which began operation this spring, mainly serves students from the U.K. and Europe. Students will spend their first year on the U.K. campus and second year on the Shenzhen campus.
Additionally, all students enrolled in the Shenzhen programs can apply to spend one semester at the U.K. campus. And the U.K. campus will offer short-term courses for corporate and business practitioners to learn about and update their knowledge of China’s economic development and policies.
(China Daily)