University of Nottingham Ningbo, China

The University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) is a University of The University of Nottingham, UK, situated in the city of Ningbo in the coastal province of Zhejiang, near Shanghai. The campus is a joint venture partnership with the Zhejiang Wanli Education Group. ^[5] It is one of the first Sino-foreign universities in China with approval from the Chinese Ministry of Education. It also receives support from Ningbo Educational Bureau.

Campus

The land on which university buildings (libraries, lecture halls, administration and residence halls) are situated is under the jurisdiction of Yinzhou district. The campus has some open fields and big gardens. It is the site of China's first zero-carbon building, called CSET (Centre for Sustainable Energy Technologies) opened in September 2008.

The University of Nottingham received an invitation from Shanghai’s government to establish a new Sino-foreign campus in the district of Fengxian (奉贤区), partly to accommodate its growing student population and its local economic development needs (the proposed Shanghai campus would likely focus on scientific fields such as the chemicals, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and aerospace industries and not on business studies like in Ningbo since Shanghai already has several good business schools). However, while discussions are at an advanced stage, nothing has been finalized yet. The proposed development being subject to approval by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, possibly followed by an opening in 2012.

History

In 2004, Madame Chen Zhili, Councillor of the State Council of the People's Republic of China and former Education Minister, agreed to launch the China Policy Institute , a policy-oriented think-tank which produces top-quality research and policy papers on selected topics to help build a more informed dialogue between China and the UK and to guide government and business strategies. More recently, Professor LuYongxiang, President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, came to Nottingham where he was awarded an honorary degree and gave a keynote speech to a University conference on Traditional Chinese Medicine. Madame Chen Zhili, Councillor of the State Council of the People's Republic of China and former Education Minister received her honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of Nottingham in 2003. The University made its most significant decision in terms of developing its international strategy when it appointed Professor Yang Fujia as the sixth Chancellor of the University. He was, and remains, the first Chinese Chancellor of a British University.

The university admitted its first students in 2004, for Arts and Social Science subjects. The university's 146 acre (591,333 m²) campus, was launched on 6 September 2005 by the then British Prime Minister Tony Blair from Beijing in a broadcast for China Central Television. It was officially opened on 23 February 2005 by British Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, in the presence of Chinese education minister Zhou Ji and State Counsellor Chen Zhili. The University of Nottingham Ningbo, China is sponsored by the City of Ningbo, run by the University of Nottingham UK with cooperation from Zhejiang Wanli University. It is the first Sino-Foreign university in China with approval from the Chinese Ministry of Education. The President of The University of Nottingham Ningbo China is Professor Yang Fujia, a distinguished academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and former President of Fudan University, and the current Provost and CEO is Professor Nick Miles. Professor Miles succeeded the previous Provost, Professor Roger Woods, in April 2010.

Activities

As well as establishing bilateral links with some 60 Chinese universities, The University of Nottingham has formal student exchange agreements and joint research projects with most of China's top universities. This includes institutions within the Universitas 21 alliance of leading international universities, such as Fudan and Shanghai Jiao Tong.

The University of Nottingham recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Fudan University to create a ‘Confucius Institute' in Nottingham. It is dedicated to the deepening and expansion of existing links with schools, business, government, community groups and the Chinese cultural community to promote the teaching of Chinese language and contemporary Chinese culture. The Confucius Institute will also promote academic links with Chinese universities and showcase contemporary Chinese popular art and media, including films, television programmes and the creative arts such as painting, photography, literature, music and the performing arts.

The University of Nottingham has teaching and research links with China in fields as diverse as satellite technology, the environment, education and law. Nottingham, along with other UK universities, has not only experienced an increase in its research activity with Chinese universities but it has also seen a huge increase in the number of Chinese students wishing to study in the UK. In addition to the Chinese students coming to Nottingham, more than 1,400 students from the UK and around the world are taking courses about contemporary China in the University's new School of Contemporary Chinese Studies. The School enables students to take a range of 'with Chinese Studies' degrees, for example Management with Chinese. Most recently courses have been established in Mathematics with Chinese Studies, and Electronic and Electrical Engineering with Chinese Studies.

The University has also established a major scholarship programme with Hunan University. It also has a joint appointment with Tsinghua University, Beijing, focusing on international collaboration, and is working on various e-learning initiatives with Chinese institutions. The University of Nottingham's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Colin Campbell, has been awarded Honorary Citizenship of the city of Ningbo and recently received an Honorary Doctorate from Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Economic development agencies within the United Kingdom are now based at the campus of The University of Nottingham Ningbo, China. The City of Nottingham is twinned with the City of Ningbo, and there are well established cultural and community projects enriching lives in both England and China. Welbeck Primary School in Nottingham, for example, has recently established a link with Jiangdong Central Primary school in Ningbo, China, along with five other Nottingham schools. Students from Ningbo visiting the UK for study now undertake volunteering work within local schools, helping to widen appreciation of Chinese culture and lifestyle.

Academic Leaders

• Professor Fujia Yang (杨福家):Chancellor, The University of Nottingham
• Professor David Greenaway (economist):Vice-Chancellor, The University of Nottingham
• Professor Nick Miles: Provost & Chief Executive Officer, The University of Nottingham Ningbo China

Academics

Research and Innovation

The University is active in research, collaborating within China and Internationally. Significant collaboration exists with The University of Nottingham UK. Indeed one of aims of The University of Nottingham Ningbo's Research is to bring the Research expertise of The University of Nottingham UK to China. Currently the University has a series of research institutes:

Centre for Global Finance

Centre for Research in Applied Linguistics

Institute for Comparative Cultural Studies

Institute of Asia Pacific Studies

International Centre for Behavioural Business Research

International Finance Research Centre

Learning Science Research Centre

The Ko Lee Institute of Sustainable Development--Centre for Sustainable Energy Technologies (CSET)

The Leverhulme Centre for Research on Globalisation and Economic Policy

Budget

Officially, the University of Nottingham is a not-for-profit organisation, not a money-making operation. However, it charges fees required to cover its running costs. For its current activities, The University of Nottingham Ningbo China is supposed to put any surpluses it makes back into further improving the university.

Agora Report

In the December 2007, founding Provost Ian Gow OBE published an article in the discussion paper titled ‘British Universities in China: The Reality Beyond the Rhetoric,’ by Agora [1]. The article, drawing on his experience as founding Provost of UNNC, cautioned British Universities that they must acquire a more thorough understanding of Chinese higher education policy if they were to succeed in building successful strategic alliances over the long-term, especially in light of China's growing presence as a major educational hub and R&D power. A statement was issued by Vice-Chancellor Colin Campbell distancing the university from Prof. Gow’s position, criticizing an article by the The Guardian for a misleading assessment of Prof. Gow’s article. Another response was subsequently published in the Guardian ^[6].

References

1. ^ ^{a b} http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/shared/shared_cpi/documents/What_makes_a_good_university_1.pdf
2. ^ "Universitas 21". Universitas 21. http://www.universitas21.com/Member/membernottingham.html. Retrieved 2011-01-02. 
3. ^ ^{a b} "The University of Nottingham Ningbo, China » About The University". http://www.nottingham.edu.cn/content.php?c=1. Retrieved 2007-09-01. 
4. ^ http://www.insidermedia.com/insider/midlands/44785-/
5. ^ http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=187834&sectioncode=26
6. ^ http://education.guardian.co.uk/higherfeedback/story/0,,2224010,00.html

External links

University of Nottingham Campus Links

• University of Nottingham Ningbo, China website
• University of Nottingham Nottingham, England website
• University of Nottingham Semenyih, Malaysia website

Nottingham University Business School (NUBS) Links

• NUBS, China website
• NUBS, UK website
• NUBS, Malaysia website