On the afternoon of April 17, the opening ceremony for the first cohort of the cooperative education program between CUEB and Seoul School of Integrated Sciences & Technologies (aSSIST), South Korea, was held at the Press Room of Boyuan Building. Present at the ceremony were Wu Weixing, Deputy Party Secretary and President of CUEB; Choi Yong-joo, President of aSSIST; and Kim Bo-young, Vice President of aSSIST. Li Kunpeng, Member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee, Vice President of CUEB and Dean of the School of Artificial Intelligence, presided over the event.

Before the ceremony, President Wu met with President Choi. The two sides reviewed the results of previous cooperation and reached consensus on deepening collaboration at the interdisciplinary discipline of artificial intelligence and management. They agreed to further expand the joint doctoral programme, strengthen research and academic cooperation, and leverage disciplinary strengths to produce high-quality outcomes, striving to set a benchmark for Sino-South Korean higher education cooperation.

In his address, President Wu noted that artificial intelligence and big data technologies are profoundly reshaping the world, and the partnership between the two universities is a vital step to keep pace with the times. He pointed out that CUEB boasts solid foundations in economics, management and “AI+” interdisciplinary discipline, while aSSIST enjoys distinctive advantages in the industrial application of artificial intelligence. The collaboration aims to nurture high-end professionals with global vision, patriotism, technical competence and business thinking. Wu urged the first cohort to cherish the opportunity and bravely act as the forerunners in the intelligent digital era — by empowering themselves with knowledge, engaging in open exchange and mutual learning, and committing to hands-on practice.

President Choi stated that the program marks the first master’s-level cooperation in running schools between the two universities. He praised these students as witnesses to the friendship between the two universities and promoters of the integration of Chinese and Korean wisdom. He encouraged them to deepen their studies at the crossroads of artificial intelligence and management, so as to become interdisciplinary talents that the society needs.

Wei Xianhua, Dean of aSSIST China Graduate School, remarked that the launch of the program is a vivid practice of deepening educational exchanges and cooperation between China and South Korea. It will serve as a bridge to build the program into a benchmark for Sino-foreign cooperative education. Zhou Zhenkun, a faculty representative from the School of Artificial Intelligence, introduced the program’s curriculum features of “keeping abreast of cutting-edge trends and emphasizing practical application”. He encouraged the students to stay curious, fear no challenges, and invest in themselves amid technological transformation.

During the ceremony, Vice President Kim and Vice President Li jointly presented admission letters to student representatives. The two universities also prepared commemorative gifts, which were presented to student representatives by Yun Seong-il, Head of aSSIST’s Administrative Department, and Liu Wenchuan, Director of the International Cooperation and Exchange Department of CUEB. Meng Xiaoning, a freshman representative, shared motivation for joining the program as a product manager in the intelligent connected vehicle industry, driven by the need to adapt to technological changes.

Adopting a “1.5+0” training model, the program allows students to complete their studies domestically on weekends, focusing on cutting-edge areas of artificial intelligence and big data. The first cohort of 50 students comes from sectors of finance, technology, healthcare, education, manufacturing and others.

Relevant representatives from the International Cooperation and Exchange Department and the School of Artificial Intelligence, faculty representatives from both universities, and all new students attended the event.