On the morning of January 9th, the International Cultural Exchange College was filled with a warm and enthusiastic atmosphere. The college meticulously organized a New Year Dialogue for international students studying at SUFE. 18 undergraduate and graduate students from 15 countries, including Malaysia, Japan, France, Myanmar, and South Africa, gathered together to celebrate the Spring Festival and discuss development, pooling their wisdom and strength to advance the university's international education endeavors. Attending the symposium were Yang Hong, the Party Secretary of the International Cultural Exchange College, Dong Jing, the Dean, Rong Jun, the Vice Dean, as well as relevant teachers from the International Education and Teaching Center, the International Student Services Office, and the Admission Office.
At the beginning of the meeting, Dean Dong Jing delivered a speech. She highly praised the students' academic performance over the past year. She noted that the diligence, proactive spirit, and outstanding achievements in academic research and cultural exchange demonstrated by the international students were the result of joint efforts by both the individuals and the university. She extended her most sincere Spring Festival greetings to the students and earnestly hoped that they would provide comprehensive suggestions for the college's development with a more open mindset and keen perspective.
Vice Dean Rong Jun emphasized the significance of the symposium. He stated that Shanghai University of Finance and Economics has always been committed to building a high-level research-oriented university with international influence, and international student education is an indispensable and vital component of this mission. He hoped that the students would leverage their unique strengths to offer valuable opinions and suggestions on curriculum optimization, admissions policy adjustments, and daily management of international students, thereby collectively promoting the enhancement of the college's internationalization level.
Subsequently, student representatives took turns to speak. The students engaged in an in-depth and lively discussion on various aspects, including the university's courses, admissions, and daily management of international students, and put forward a series of forward-looking and constructive suggestions.
After listening to the students' speeches, Vice Dean Rong Jun remarked that the suggestions put forward by the students provided valuable ideas and directions for the college's development. The college would take this symposium as an opportunity to carefully sort out and study the students' opinions, and in combination with the university's development strategy and actual situation, formulate feasible improvement measures. This would further optimize curriculum settings, admissions work, and daily management of international students, striving to build an internationally competitive brand for international student education.
Dean Dong Jing stated that the college has always adhered to the educational philosophy of student-centeredness, with students' needs and development being the starting point and ultimate goal of all the college's work in her concluding remarks. The college would carefully study and address the various suggestions and opinions put forward by the students. She encouraged the students to continue actively participating in the college's affairs in the future, offering suggestions and ideas for the college's development in various forms, and jointly improving the university's management and service level for international students. She wished the students academic progress and a pleasant life in the new year, and hoped that they would achieve their life goals soon.
This symposium was not only a comprehensive summary of the international student work in 2024 but also a beautiful expectation for the international student education cause in the new year. Through in-depth interaction and communication between Chinese and foreign teachers and students, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics further enhanced its internationalized educational atmosphere. This has injected strong momentum into the university's efforts to expand its internationalization level and enhance the international dissemination of Chinese culture. It will surely propel the university to take more solid steps in the field of international education and make greater contributions to cultivating high-quality talents with a global vision and cross-cultural communication skills. Moving forward, the college will continue to conduct various teacher-student exchange activities, establish and improve a long-term feedback and optimization mechanism for international student management, and constantly improve and perfect its work to provide international students with higher-quality educational services and create a better learning and living environment.
{Student Speeches}
Cultural adaptation is a challenge that every international student coming to China will face. I hope the college can provide more cultural guidance and psychological support to help us better integrate into Chinese academic and social life. For example, the university could offer preparatory courses before we arrive in China to help us gain a deeper understanding of Chinese culture and how to live in China. Such support is very important to us as it can help us adapt to the new environment more quickly and reduce cultural conflicts.
— Nonhlanhla Dawn Ngwenya (South Africa), Ph.D. Candidate in Economic Law, Class of 2024
SUFE offers us a wealth of professional academic resources, enabling us to rapidly enhance our professional competence. To further enrich our learning experience, I hope the university can strengthen its cooperation with top universities around the world and introduce more international courses and teaching methods. It is also crucial to increase opportunities for communication and interaction between international students and Chinese students. This not only broadens our horizons but also fosters our innovative thinking. Through such exchanges and cooperation, we can better understand global issues and become talents with international competitiveness.
— Ayesha Fatima (Pakistan), Master's Candidate in Finance, Class of 2023
As a senior student about to graduate, I am very grateful to the university for providing us with valuable opportunities to interact with industry professionals. This allows us to not only master theoretical knowledge in the classroom but also engage in face-to-face interactions with industry experts to gain a deep understanding of the specific skills required by the industry today. Such experiences greatly facilitate our smooth career search as international students. I look forward to the university continuing to provide more high-quality resources like these, offering us more opportunities to have in-depth communication and interaction with outstanding individuals in the industry, and laying a solid foundation for our career development.
—WU HAO KO (Malaysia), Undergraduate in Finance, Class of 2021
