Home Article

Engineering at Illinois and Zhejiang University partner on Joint Institute for Engineering

2016-04-15

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and its College of  Engineering have accepted an invitation from Zhejiang University to form  a joint engineering institute. Beginning in the Fall 2016, about 150  undergraduate students will study civil engineering, computer  engineering, electrical engineering, and mechanical engineering at the  Institute. The degrees these students receive will be built on  Engineering at Illinois’ globally recognized curriculum.

Chancellor Barbara Wilson and Jin Deshui, Chairman of the ZJU University Council, unveil a plaque commemorating establishment of the ZJU-UIUC Institute.

“People  all over the world recognize that the way we teach engineering is  second to none. And we recognize that the education and values that make  America prosperous and influential need to be shared with other  countries. The Joint Institute is a means of doing that,” said Barbara  Wilson, chancellor of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  

The Joint Institute will be part of Zheijiang University’s new  international campus in Haining, China. The international campus will  bring together world-renowned programs in the liberal arts, the  sciences, engineering, business, and biomedical sciences for students  from around the world.

Students will receive a degree from Zhejiang University as well as a  certification from Zhejiang University and the University of Illinois.  The Joint Institute also plans to pursue a dual degree bachelor’s  program and graduate degrees in the coming years.

Zhejiang University is considered one of the Top 5 universities in  China. Like Illinois, it is a large, comprehensive university with a  very strong engineering program.

“Zhejiang University is a world-class engineering institution, and  this collaboration presents an amazing opportunity for us to expand  Engineering at Illinois’ already substantial global presence,” said  Andreas Cangellaris, dean of the College of Engineering at Illinois.

Chancellor Barbara Wilson presented a commemorative photo plaque of prominent Chinese meteorologist, geologist, and educator Chu Kochen to ZJU President Wu Zhaohui. A former president of Zhejiang University, Chu came to United States in 1910 to continue his education, graduating from College of Agriculture at Illinois in 1913.

Students will  be taught by faculty from Zhejiang University and from Illinois. Faculty  will be trained to Illinois’ highest standards, and all new faculty  members will complete a carefully designed, one-year development  program.  

This partnership will also create a unique study-abroad experience  for Illinois students. They will have an opportunity to study with  world-class institutions teaching other disciplines, while enrolling in  the same engineering classes they would back home.

The Joint Institute expects to enroll about 150 undergraduate  students in the first year and about 700 undergraduate students by its  fifth year. That will make it larger than any current educational  partnership with China for any U.S. institution.