UK-China alliance with University of Edinburgh creates $1bn biomedical campus

A new $1 billion campus near Shanghai, which involves the University of Edinburgh, was officially opened on Saturday 21 October 2017 as part of an innovative UK-China education partnership.

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Chinese students in park

The purpose-built International Campus at Haining, Zhejiang Province, which will eventually accommodate 5,000 students, brings together biomedical researchers and teaching staff from the University of Edinburgh and Zhejiang University.

Staff from Edinburgh and Zhejiang will deliver a four-year degree in Biomedical Sciences – the first of its type in China – which will be taught entirely in English.   The degree programme will offer a curriculum reflecting the full breadth of biomedical science, including infectious diseases, neuroscience, pharmacology, physiology and reproductive biology.  

The Zhejiang University – University of Edinburgh Institute will also have a strong emphasis on research, with leading international scientists recruited to work alongside colleagues from Edinburgh and Zhejiang.  

Teaching will be provided by a mixture of staff based permanently at the new campus, and a ‘Flying Faculty’ from Edinburgh – staff who will travel to China for 12-week periods.  

The first 22 students were enrolled on the BSc (Hons) in Integrative Biomedical Sciences programme in September 2016.  A further 67 have enrolled for the 2017/18 academic year, with a target of 600 in the coming years.  

Professor Yonghua Song, Executive Vice President of Zhejiang University and Dean of International Campus said

The opening of the International Campus at Haining marks a very important stage in our collaboration with the University of Edinburgh. We are bringing together top researchers and academics to teach some of China’s brightest young minds.”

Professor Susan Welburn, Executive Dean of the Zhejiang – Edinburgh Joint Institute added:

We will equip these international students with the skills and knowledge to lead their own research teams and develop ground-breaking medical treatments to benefit patients around the world.”

 

Related links

Information on the ZJU-UoE institute