On the afternoon of September 11, the School of Statistics and Data Science (SSDS) held the opening ceremony for the 2026 cohort of Sino-Foreign Cooperative Education Program in Statistics at the Lecture Hall of Boxue Building. Prof. Bill Flanagan, President of the University of Alberta (UA), Canada; CUEB President Wu Weixing and vice-presidents Yang Kui and Li Kunpeng attended the ceremony. The ceremony was presided over by Sha Yezhou, Deputy Dean of the School of Statistics and Data Science.

Extending a warm welcome to the UA delegation in his speech, President Wu hoped that both sides would deepen cooperation in high-quality personneldevelopment, research and innovation, joint management and other areas. He noted that, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of CUEB, the partnership between “CUEB Red” and “UA Green” marks an important achievement for the university to implement a high-level opening-up in education and propel the reform of digital and intelligent personnel development at the start of China’s15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030). It also provided new impetus to the development of the statistics discipline. The program had three distinctive features: the complementary strengths of the two universities, co-developed curricula, and international learning modes. He encouraged students to strengthen their foundation, study actively, pursue rigor and truth, and embrace their responsibility. Also, he hoped that the two universities would work together and build the program into a landmark achievement.

On behalf of the UA, Prof. Bill Flanagan delivered an address, in which he expressed his welcome to the inaugural cohort of 116 students and their parents. He noted that the launch of the Cooperative Education Program, which gathered the advantages of two universities in Statistics, Data Science, and other fields, was an important milestone for the relationship between the two universities. UA would develop the program into a flagship program and launch a coursework-based Master of Statistics program through collaboration. He hoped students would enjoy a splendid experience and achievement while studying in an academic environment that brings together the knowledge and expertise of both universities.

Prof. Declan Ali, Dean of the Faculty of Science of UA, noted in his speech that the launch of the program is an important milestone for the two universities. He thanked his colleagues at CUEB for their efforts in developing and launching the program. Also, he hoped the program would create more opportunities for faculty members in both universities to collaborate and build a foundation for developing new academic programs and collaborating in the future.

Ren Tao, Deputy Party Secretary and Dean of the School of Statistics and Data Science, welcomed 116 freshmen of the program in his speech. He noted that the school tried its best to advance the program, and this year’s enrollment rate reached a record high. Previously, the first cohort of graduates from the Sino-Foreign Cooperative Education Program achieved a progression rate exceeding 90%, with 77.42% admitted to universities ranked among the top 100 in the QS World University Rankings. He encouraged the students to devote themselves to diligent study and deep inquiry, embrace openness and inclusiveness, build a solid foundation in mathematical and statistical foundations, and enhance their cross-cultural communication skills; while also calling on them to integrate knowledge with action, courageously shoulder their missions, and translate what they learn in the classroom into practical strength for society.

Qiu Xihao, a representative of the 2026 cohort,called on his fellow students to lay a solid foundation in mathematics and programming, develop cross-cultural communication skills, and stay rooted in Chinese civilization and carry forward fine traditional Chinese culture; as well as to actively engage in social practice and strive to serve as bridges between different civilizations.

Theceremony also featured the unveiling of the cooperative education program. The presidents of two universities unveiled the plaque of theSino-Foreign Cooperative Education Program in Statistics, marking its official launch.

During the signing of the university-enterprise cooperation memorandum, Wang Ke, Deputy General Manager of iFLYTEK’s Beijing Branch, delivered a speech and congratulated the new students of the program. He noted that in 2024, CUEB became one of the first 24 council members of the iFLYTEK Spark University Alliance. The two sides have had in-depth exchanges on multiple occasions regarding discipline-specific large models, smart courses, internships and practical training.He also expressed his expectation of jointly building smart courses, co-cultivating practice-orientedpersonnel, and co-creating an open ecosystem, while exploring a new model of collaborative education among universities, international partners, and technology enterprises. Witnessed by Yang Kui and Wang Ke, Ren Taosigned the university-enterprise cooperation memorandum on behalf of the School with a representative of iFLYTEK. It was reported that this year, iFLYTEK provided 30 faculty members and students from the School with “AI-Empowered Practical Training in Statistics” focusing on the application of AI agents in the field of statistics.The training has been incorporated into the program’s practical teaching system.

Chen Haimu, Deputy Party Secretary of the School of Statistics and Data Science, presented student representatives with commemorative badges featuring the emblems of the two universities and the school’s logo. He encouraged the students to take root in the land of Beijing, carry forward the Silk Road Spirit, and broaden their global perspectives. In the integration of “CUEB Red” and “UA Green”, they should become explorers in the data era, communicators across diverse cultures, and strivers for national rejuvenation.

Sha Yezhou remarked that on the occasion of CUEB’s 70th anniversary, faculty and students witnessed the deepening of Sino-Canadian cooperation between the two universities and the steady advancement of the Sino-Foreign Cooperative Education Program. He expected that students would keep in mind the entrustment of teachers from both universities. In addition to cultivating a heartfelt commitment to home and country, they need to develop an international perspective and then successfully complete their studies. CUEBwill always empower everyone to grow.

The Statistics Program, jointly offered by the School of Statistics and Data Science at CUEB and the University of Alberta, is a full-time undergraduate Sino-Foreign Cooperative Education Program approved by the Ministry of Education and incorporated into the national general higher education enrollment plan. The program introduces 21 high-quality core courses from the foreign partner, accounting for over 60% of the professional curriculum. With a strong faculty team, the program engages internationally renowned scholars as advisors, features joint instruction by Chinese and international faculty, and implements flipped classroom teaching across the board. Oriented toward the digital economy and statistical big data, the program is dedicated to cultivating top-tier personnel with the “three-type, one-oriented” attributes— innovative, interdisciplinary, application-oriented, and internationalized.

The University of Alberta, the Canadian partner institution, was founded in 1908 and is a world-leading public research university. It is a founding member of the U15 Group of Canadian Research Universities, a member of the Worldwide Universities Network, and a member of the World Energy Universities Network. The university ranks 94th globally and 4th in Canada in the QS World University Rankings 2026. It holds world influence and reputation in engineering, medicine, science, and business management, and is particularly prominent in artificial intelligence and machine learning research, counting among its alumni the internationally renowned core developer of AlphaGo. The university has achieved notable outcomes in cooperation with China, and its “Canada Learning Initiative in China”(CLIC) and “Global Academic Leadership Development”(GALD) programs provide important platforms for faculty and student exchanges between Canada and China.

Also in attendance were relevant leaders and faculty representatives from both universities, all faculty and students of the Program, and relevant representatives from iFLYTEK.