UG satisfied with evaluation meeting with Chinese Ministry of Education regarding branch campus

On 26 July a delegation from the University of Groningen, led by President of the Board of the University Sibrand Poppema, took part in an evaluation meeting with experts from the Chinese Ministry of Education.

On 26 July a delegation from the University of Groningen, led by President of the Board of the University Sibrand Poppema, took part in an evaluation meeting with experts from the Chinese Ministry of Education.

The meeting was part of the application procedure for the establishment of the branch campus in Yantai, China. The University of Groningen (UG), China Agricultural University (CAU) and the city of Yantai have submitted a joint application to the Chinese authorities to establish the University of Groningen Yantai in the coastal city of Yantai. Dutch chargé d’affaires André Driessen and education attaché David Pho were also present at the UG’s request to support the project.

After a brief tour of the future location of the University of Groningen Yantai (UGY), the delegation attended the meeting with the evaluation committee, with representatives present from the Chinese Ministry of Education, CAU, the city of Yantai and the province of Shandong. Chargé d’affaires Driessen gave a speech on the importance of internationalization and of the branch campus for future collaboration between the Netherlands and China in the field of education.

President of the Board of the University of Groningen Sibrand Poppema is satisfied with how the meeting went. ‘Together with our partners from CAU, we were able to give satisfactory answers to all of the committee’s questions. I feel we presented our plans well, and the reactions from the committee were positive. Now we must wait for the final assessment of the application.’

Following approval by the Chinese authorities, the UG will make a definitive decision about the establishment of the branch campus, in discussion with the consultative participation bodies, the Supervisory Board and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. The UGY will offer Bachelor’s, Master’s and PhD programmes to Chines and international students, with graduates being awarded University of Groningen certificates. The branch campus will also enable students and staff from Groningen to gain experience abroad and give researchers the chance to conduct ground-breaking research in China.

The aim is for the first 7 degree programmes to start a preparatory year in September 2017, with students starting the programmes in 2018.