Polytech Group Audit TIEI

From April 22 to 23, a group of Polytech Group experts visited Tianjin University (TJU) and conducted a two-day audit and inspection of the Tianjin International Education Institute (TIEI) which has applied for membership in the Polytech Group.

Polytech is a group of 15 public institutions dedicated to higher education, research and innovation in engineering. These institutions, under the authority of the French Ministry of Higher Education, form a network of 15 French universities, sharing a unique model for their 15 engineering faculties.

Li Jiajun, the Party Secretary of Tianjin University welcomes the experts.

On the morning of April 22, Li Jiajun, the Party Secretary of Tianjin University welcomed the experts and gave a detailed introduction to the history of Tianjin University, its efforts in bolstering engineering education, and the development of TIEI. Li said that learning from the French engineering educational model and adapting it according to TJU’s specific circumstances and the social needs of our country, TIEI has developed its own unique school management system and talent cultivation concept, both of which are highly recognized by Commission des Titres d’Ingénieur (CTI). After five years of exploration and development, TIEI has made remarkable achievements. Li Jiajun also conducted a more in-depth exchange with Polytech Group experts on other aspects such as TJU’s emerging engineering education construction development plan, its recent scientific research achievements, the ongoing international cooperation projects, and the university’s personnel training system.

Yuan Yingjin delivers the opening remarks.

In the afternoon, the TIEI audit meeting was held in the first conference room on Weijin Road Campus of Tianjin University. Four experts from the Polytech Group attended the audit. Yuan Yingjin, the vice president of Tianjin University gave an official welcoming speech on behalf of the university. He said that TIEI is a pilot area for engineering talent training jointly established by Tianjin University and Polytech Nice Sophia. Following the training model of French engineers, TIEI plays a leading role in the construction of emerging engineering education in response to the scientific and technological revolution and industrial reform, and serves for a series of national strategies such as “Made in China 2025”. In particular, he emphasized that TIEI was awarded the highest level of professional certification by CTI in 2017 and was recognized and highly praised by CTI Vice President Jean-Marc THERET.

Three TIEI representatives made subsequent reports to the experts.

Shan Xiaolin, the Party Secretary of the QHC and TIEI emphasized the significance of this audit, expressing his expectation to build an education resource sharing platform with the Polytech Group members that will foster a wider range of learning and exchange opportunities for both Chinese and French students. He also hoped to promote the cooperation and exchanges between Chinese and French companies and teachers and realize the integration of production and education in engineering talent training.

Chen Guanyi, the Dean of TIEI mainly introduced the development and construction of Tianjin and Tianjin University in recent years. He said that the goal of TIEI is to cultivate international engineering leaders with “rigorous attitudes, profound knowledge, innovative spirits and practical abilities” to adapt to the social needs and promote the world scientific and technological progress, thus contributing to the construction of emerging engineering education.

Guan Jing, the vice Dean of TIEI made detailed reports on TIEI’s origin, talent cultivation mode, school operation characteristics, teaching quality, Enterprise Club platform, and internationalization, highlighting the innovations and changes TIEI underwent in teaching and talent training. 

 Representative teachers from relevant professions such as Smart Building, Electronics, Computer Science, Biomedical Engineering, and Water Engineering respectively reported to the experts from aspects of professional characteristics, specialty advantages, research directions, scientific research results, and laboratory construction and answered the on-the-spot questions from Polytech Group experts.

To showcase TIEI’s exploration in building a joint school-industry talent cultivation system, members of TIEI Enterprise Club, an organization comprising companies that cooperate with TIEI, also attended the audit and explained their work to the experts.

Another meeting was arranged for Wang Shuxin, the Vice President of Tianjin University to receive the Polytech Group experts. Wang introduced “TJU action”, the university’s blueprint for emerging engineering education (3E). He stressed that corresponding to the 3E concept, the French engineering educational philosophy tended to be reproducible and popular in the context of prevailing engineering education reform in China. Wang also consulted the experts about the cultivation of innovative talents in the future engineering field, research projects, and discipline construction.

Experts visit some laboratories.

Apart from audit meetings, the experts conducted several on-the-spot investigations, visiting two professional laboratories of Computer Science and Water Engineering, talking to teachers and students in the laboratories and interacting with some TIEI students to get first-hand materials.

TIEI submitted a report to the Polytech Group in December 2018, applying to become a member of the Polytech Group. Once TIEI has passed the Polytech Group audit, it will share the educational and teaching resources of all member colleges in the Group. In addition, TIEI will become the first overseas member of the Polytech Group, which will enhance both Tianjin University’s and TIEI’s international competitiveness and influence in the field of engineer education.

By Liu Yingtong from TIEI; Photography: Tang Meng, Liu Yingtong

Editors: Eva Yin & Doris Harrington