Professor Yang Xianjin, Secretary of the Party Committee of Tianjin University
Professor Jin Donghan, President of Tianjin University
Dear Members of the Tianjin University Community,
As 2023 draws to a close, 2024 ushers in a fleeting moment. On behalf of Tianjin University and in my own name, we extend our best New Year wishes to all students, faculty, staff, retired colleagues, alumni worldwide, and all friends who have been supporting and caring for the development of our University.
Over the past year, Tianjin University has solidly propelled high-quality development. Breakthroughs in talent cultivation and technological innovation attest to our accomplishments, while the campus construction and management has reached new heights.
In 2023, Tianjin University diligently strengthened top-level planning, transforming the call for building an educationally strong nation into the “Tianjin University Action.” The momentous convening of the 11th CPC Congress of Tianjin University integrated education, technology, and talent cultivation to set forth the university’s five-year goals and specific actions.
The year 2023 saw the University’s commitment to its fundamental mission of fostering virtue and morality, and concentrating on nurturing outstanding talents for the future. It accelerated comprehensive reforms in talent cultivation and provided “mentorship” for first-year undergraduates. The undergraduate talent development plan was comprehensively revised in accordance with the new requirements of the new era. Advancements were made in the construction of emerging engineering education. The university continued to drive the construction of National Excellent Engineer Education Program. It won 27 national-level teaching achievement awards, ranking first nationwide; two disciplines were included in the Ministry of Education’s “101 Plan” for teaching reform. It also took the lead in constructing an Intelligent Medical Engineering major to promote effective alignment between talent supply and demand, thereby devising new pathways for innovative medical education. Strengthening the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, it facilitated an advanced training path from theory to practice and culminated in real-world training. As a pioneer university in the “National Superiority Plan,” it actively explored new avenues to cultivate high-level and high-quality innovative teaching faculty for secondary schools. Successfully hosting the China International College Students’ Innovation Competition in 2023, it secured 23 gold awards, and stood on the stage of the championship competition. And over 60% of graduates were employed in national key regions, industries, and units.
In 2023, the University adhered to talents as the fundamental cornerstone for academic governance. We implement a strategy to bolster talent for a strong institution, nurturing the “backbone” of Tianjin University. The continuous endeavors of nurturing and supporting strategic scientists, technology leaders, outstanding young talents, excellent foundational youth talents, and high-level innovative teams were reinforced. Tianjin University explored new institutional reforms and adopted high standards to develop postdoctoral talent. It ranked first among national universities in the National Postdoctoral Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition.
During 2023, the University placed a significant emphasis on elevating its independent technological innovation capabilities, accelerating the establishment of a top innovation and entrepreneurship “Tianjin University ecosystem”. Economics and business discipline entered the top one percent in global academic institutions, while engineering disciplines continued to maintain their position within the top ten thousand globally. We set high standards for interdisciplinary integration in disciplines, vigorously advancing the establishment of the “Energy Storage Technology” discipline center, and establishing the country’s first batch of micro-energy storage majors and training platforms. Over the year, we led 31 national key R&D projects, maintaining the university’s position at the forefront among national higher education institutions in terms of the cumulative number of project undertakings. Significant strides were made in the development of major scientific research platforms, such as the continued breakthroughs made by the National Large-Scale Earthquake Engineering Simulation Research Facility. Additional national key laboratories were established, with several key laboratories smoothly transitioning into the new sequence of national key laboratories. The official inauguration of the Tianjin University Brain-Computer Interaction and Human-Machine Fusion Haihe Laboratory, led by the university, marked another milestone. In cooperation with the Binhai New Area, we signed a cooperative agreement to promote the construction of the Tianjin Bohai Rim Coastal Earth Critical Zone National Observation and Research Station. It released relevant plans to support the construction of the Tiankai Higher Education Innovation Park. It focused on empowering technology to drive industrial development and improve quality, and providing targeted support to enhance quality and efficiency.
In 2023, the university comprehensively strengthened domestic and international exchanges and cooperation, showcasing Tianjin University’s strengths through cultural inheritance and innovation. The internationalization of education continued to elevate, optimizing and expanding the global cooperation network. The university deepened the construction of the ASEAN-China Network for Cooperation and Exchanges among Engineering and Technology Universities. Frequent high-level mutual visits by delegations and visits from ambassadors of seven countries to China expanded the global network. It inaugurated Tianjin University-National University of Singapore Joint Institute in Fuzhou, and actively planned for Hainan International College of Tianjin University to open up new higher-level international cooperation avenues. It established a virtual reality education center for international students to cultivate outstanding talents who understand China, cherish Tianjin, and love Tianjin University. And we continued to enhance the value and influence of Tianjin University’s culture, successfully hosting the 12th World Alumni Congress and organizing cultural events such as “Crabapple Blossom Festival”, “Red Leaf Festival”, and “Reading Campus”.
2024 marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China and is a pivotal year for our university to achieve leapfrog development during the 14th Five-Year Plan. Let us shoulder the mission of the new journey, vigorously create a new paradigm for constructing a distinctive and world-class university with Chinese characteristics. Let us make new and greater contributions to China’s comprehensive advancement towards modernization and the great cause of national rejuvenation.
We sincerely wish a happy and healthy new year to all members of the global Tianjin University community and to all friends from various sectors who care about and support the development of Tianjin University.
Professor Yang Xianjin, Secretary of the Party Committee of Tianjin University
Professor Jin Donghan, President of Tianjin University
Translated by Xie Qingyue
Editor: Sun Xiaofang
