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Summer Research Placement Programme for Mainland and Taiwan Students Hits New Record Highs

The Office of Academic Links (China) [OALC] organized the Summer Research Placement Programme for Mainland and Taiwan Students from July 1 to August 17 this year.  A total of 134 participating students from the following 46 mainland and Taiwan universities (in alphabetical order) joined the programme.  Figures of both participants and universities are new record highs since the programme was launched:

Mainland universities (38 in total)

Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Central China Normal University, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China Agricultural University, Chongqing Medical University, Dali University, Fudan University, Guangdong Ocean University, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Hainan Medical University, Hebei Medical University, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Jilin University, Jinan University, Nanhua University, Nanjing University, Nankai University, Ningbo University, Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, Peking University, Shandong University, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Soochow University, South China Normal University, South China University of Technology, Southwest Medical University, Sun Yat-sen University, Tongji University, Tsinghua University, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Wuhan University, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Zhejiang University

Taiwan universities (8 in total)

Chinese Culture University, China Medical University, China University of Technology, National Central University, National Chiao Tung University, National Taiwan University, National Tsing Hua University, National Yang-Ming University

Participants received seven-week training and placement in CUHK, while taking part in various research projects, seminars, Cantonese workshops and cultural exploration activities organized by OALC, and gaining a solid understanding of the city as well as the University through interaction with CUHK staff and students.  The following 28 units (in alphabetical order) of the University hosted participating students under the programme this year:

Faculties and Schools (6 in total)

Faculty of Law, School of Architecture, School of Biomedical Sciences, School of Chinese Medicine, School of Life Sciences, School of Pharmacy

Departments and Programmes (18 in total)

Department of Biomedical Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Department of Clinical Oncology, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Department of Educational Administration and Policy, Department of Electronic Engineering, Department of Geography and Resource Management, Department of Government and Public Administration, Department of Linguistics and Modern Languages, Department of Mathematics, Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering, Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Department of Physics, Department of Sociology, Department of Sports Science and Physical Education, Department of Systems Engineering & Engineering Management, Earth System Science Programme

Research Units (4 in total)

Center for Housing Innovations, Centre for Health Behaviours Research (Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care), State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, T Stone Robotics Institute

Below are extracts of participants' feedback and sharing:

Everything was so fresh to me.  Everyone I met was so kind.  The school bus is like a roller coaster because of the mountainous roads.  We were honored to have the opportunity to give presentations and exchange with teachers and students from CUHK and other mainland universities.  We went outside with Simon of OALC, who is a lovely and active man, just like our brother instead of a staff bureaucrat.  Every trip was happy and unforgettable, such as the visits to the Outlying Islands and Shenzhen.  The most impressive is the one to the Museum of History, which has collected and preserved so many cultural monuments closely related to the city's history so that I could learn about the history and culture of Hong Kong.  I was so unwilling to leave because I felt the city's vitality and the local people's kindness.  Here I had more time to know myself and mull my future over.  (Miss Zhang Zhan, Peking University)

Wyinga is a nice and lovely supervisor, from whom I knew about Walking Football for the first time, as well as several specific test tools.  I learned how to design a questionnaire to measure the users' exercise compliance and health outcomes.  I also did some research on alternatives to conducting the Flanker tests (cognitive function), and mastered some other skills of data inputs and maintenance. I learned that we have to prepare contingency plans and consider the possibility of accidents, since things out of our expectations are likely to happen and will then influence our outcomes.  Special thanks to everyone who cared about me and guided me patiently.  I hope I can keep my desires to explore and learn modestly in the future.  (Miss Chen Menglei, Zhejiang University) 

To enhance collaboration among CUHK and universities in mainland China and Taiwan whilst encouraging academic and cultural exchange among students across the strait, OALC has been organizing this annual summer programme for 12 consecutive years since 2008, hosting a total of 899 mainland and Taiwan students.

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CUHK and Mainland Students Gather for Cultural Interflow Camp in Hong Kong

The annual Summer Cultural Interflow Programme for Mainland Students was held from 5 to 10 August 2019.  A total of 75 students from 28 mainland universities met with 18 student ambassadors from The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) in Hong Kong. The number of participants is the highest since the programme was first organized. A list of participating mainland universities is provided below (in alphabetical order):

Beihang University, Beijing Language and Culture University, Beijing Normal University, Central China Normal University, Central South University, Chongqing University, Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Communication University of China, Fudan University, Harbin Institute of Technology, Hefei University of Technology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou University, Nanjing University, Northeast Normal University, Peking University, Renmin University of China, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shaoguan University, Shenzhen University, South China Normal University, South China University of Techinology, Southwest Jiaotong University, University, Southwest University, Sun Yat-sen University, Tianjin University, Tsinghua University, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Zhejiang University

A series of experiential learning activities were conducted in the 6-day programme, ranging from seminars, workshops, exploratory campus tours, visits to public organizations and museums, as well as excursions to local wonders and scenic spots.  Apart from learning about the university life and cultures of CUHK and other local universities, the participating students had the chance to build up a more comprehensive picture of the city's political, economic, social and cultural developments.  Students from diverse regions and backgrounds interacted actively and established a close friendship with one another, having unforgettable and meaningful camp for themselves.  Extracts of participants' feedback are available in the Chinese version of this article.

OALC has been organizing this interflow camp every summer since 2010 with the aim of providing opportunities for mainland and Hong Kong students to interact and understand different cultures from one another, also strengthening links between CUHK and its partner universities in mainland China.

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CUHK Organizes Return Visit of Ningbo-Hong Kong Exchange Programme in Hong Kong

The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) organized a six-day summer camp titled "Ningbo-Hong Kong Exchange Programme (Hong Kong Station)" from 11 to 16 August, inviting 20 students and two staff members from Ningbo University (NBU) for cultural exchange in Hong Kong. The programme received support from the Li Dak Sum Academic Exchange Fund.

Led by staff and student ambassadors of CUHK, the Ningbo representatives toured around Hong Kong to participate in a range of experiential learning activities, including seminars, Cantonese workshops and visits to various local museums and public organizations to gain an understanding of the city's political, economic, historical and cultural development.

Since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on Establishing the Li Dak Sum Academic Exchange Fund for Collaboration in 2011, CUHK has been in active links with NBU to support academic and student interflow, as well as research and training between the two universities.  The exchange visit to Ningbo this year was successfully held from 23 to 29 May.

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Updates and Students' Sharing on OALC's Student Summer Programmes under CU in Mainland & Taiwan

In the past summer months, OALC organized various short-term student interflow activities in collaboration with cross-strait partner institutions, creating opportunities of experiential learning for students of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK).  The wide range of activities included cultural experience, academic competitions, service-learning and thematic studies.  Together with the Wu Ta-You Science Camp which took place in August, a total of 418 CUHK students went to mainland China and Taiwan for 46 activities since April 2019. Below are extracts of students' feedback for recent programmes:

I have never imagined that I would have such a great experience in this programme.  It is literally an unforgettable summer to me.  As a top university in China, Fudan university has a huge, fabulous campus for you to bike to travel around, with meadows, trees and flowers everywhere.  What is the most important is that there are super nice teachers and students.  I have met a lot of international, Hong Kong local, and mainland students in this programme, and we talked about society, career, school, etc.  It is such a great cultural exploration to me! (Miss Julie Cheng, participant of Fudan University International Summer School)

Attending the course did not make me an expert about China, but let me realize that I was never knowledgeable enough to understand the nation, because it has been improving within a blink of an eye.  I should learn more about my home country before claiming myself a real Chinese.  The programme widened my horizon as a global citizen.  Not only did the words on the notes amaze me, but also the real existing scenes and monuments that consolidated my historical knowledge and understanding.  Through visiting the Shandong Museum, we got to see different weapons, the Emperors' clothes and accessories, and even the book our ancestors wrote.  (Miss Karen Chan, participant of Shangdong University "China Studies" International Summer School)

The tour to Dali was definitely a great experience.  In the past 11 days, not only did we experience the unique white minority culture, like its traditional food, dance and craftsmanship, but we also took a deeper look of problems and challenges facing Dali and its people.  We came up with unique innovative ideas, and suggested different ways of improving local tourism and agriculture, some of which were highly praised by the teachers.  Our final report which ended up with over 10,000 words in just 2 days is a nice output of celebration and endeavor that we made it happen.  Our group's speech by Ossas was so great that the audience seemed inspired a lot.  (Ken Ye, participant of Yunnan Innovation Development Planning Competition) 

Enquiries on the above programmes can be forwarded to Ms. Kit CHAN at 39434412 or via kitkwchan@cuhk.edu.hk, or Miss Lydia CHUNG at 39433225 or via lydiachung@cuhk.edu.hk.