A Great Success for " Project 211 "
September 5, 2001

A few days ago, the discipline of electricity and electronics science passed acceptance check by experts, marking the satisfactory completion of construction of 18 disciplines in which Zhejiang University invested RMB 120 million.

" Project 211" is a key construction item of higher education authorized by the state. In Nov. 1994, Zhejiang University passed the preliminary examination, and in 1996, construction kicked off. Scientific research fund kept growing by 30% for several years and reached over RMB 600 million in 2000, ranking second among all the universities in China. National natural science funds received have ranked first in number for the past two years. Zhejiang University has more academic papers included by SCI and EI than most of the other Chinese universities. Numbers of majors authorized to grant Doctoral degree and post-doctoral mobile stations have increased by 32 and 18 respectively, reaching 138 and 29 respectively, both of which come first on the national lists.

Under the principle of " focal attention to construction of leading-edge disciplines, major efforts to developing applied studies, and elaborate design and strengthening of rising mainstream disciplines", Zhejiang University drew up a plan on the development of key disciplines. According to the plan, 6 disciplinary groups including chemistry engineering, photoelectric information technology and instrument engineering, bio-medicine engineering, fluid drive and equipment automation, technology of electricity and electronics, semi-conductor materials and functional materials and 5 disciplines including CAD and computer graphics were chosen for construction.

In January 1999, construction items were the first to pass acceptance check, and during the two years that followed, altogether 22 items were completed and successively passed the acceptance examination. A series of accomplishments are achieved in construction of disciplines, rudiments teaching and public service system.

Planned enrollment figure for distant education reaches 6000

With newly establishment of 15 distant education stations, planned enrollment figure for distant education will reach 6000 in Zhejiang University.

There are altogether 38 colleges/universities authorized to offer distant education programs, and Zhejiang university was among the first four to carry out distant education programs on trial. During the past three years, Distant Education School, Zhejiang University has set up 50 branch schools and stations in Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shenyang, Anhui, Sichuan, Shandong, Fujian, Hubei, Guizhou and Yunnan with a total enrollment of over 6000 students. With the installation of satellite distant teaching networks, integration of multiple technological modes is realized, such as satellite net and Internet, real-time and non-real-time, two-way interactive and one-way transmission. At present, students can receive teaching programs sent by Zhejiang University at the sub-schools and stations; question-answering lessons and discussion lessons can be conducted in two-way audio-visual manner, which makes possible real-time two-way exchanges between students and teachers. Besides, the distant education school has implemented Internet management, enabling students to get access to teaching materials at any time and at any place as well as make inquiries about exam results, hand in homework, ask questions and carry out discussion by entering their own passwords. The first graduates are about to hand in their graduation essays.

Enrollment for 2001 is already under way: public-service-management and e-commerce majors recruit four-year college students from junior college graduates; computer science and technology, English, e-commerce and law majors recruit four-year college students from high-school graduates.