Invited by foreign institutions such as Laurea University of Applied Sciences in Finland, the Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences Alliance, the Bavarian University Alliance in Germany, and Munich University of Applied Sciences in Germany, President Wu Tao of Shanghai Health Medical College led a delegation of six members to visit Finland and Germany in mid-July 2024. The delegation included leaders from the School of Nursing and Health Management, School of Rehabilitation, School of Medical Instruments, the Dean of Academic Affairs, and related personnel from the International Exchange Office.
Laurea University of Applied Sciences in Finland is a full-time comprehensive university approved by the Finnish Ministry of Education, offering a range of bachelor's, master's, and vocational education courses in various applied disciplines. It currently has more than 10,000 full-time students and a total of 732 teachers, researchers, and administrative staff. In 2023, it was named the most attractive university of applied sciences in Finland and boasts the largest nursing (Health Care Bachelor's degree) training base in Finland. The university's unique learning in development teaching model has been recognized with an award from the Finnish Education Evaluation Center. In 2023, the Finnish Education Evaluation Center, under the Finnish Ministry of Education, awarded Laurea University of Applied Sciences the highest quality evaluation - the Excellent quality label.
During the visit to Laurea University of Applied Sciences, the delegation was warmly received by the university's President Jouni Koski, Vice-President Mari Vuolteenaho, Head of International Department Mika Kortelainen, and Development Department Head Helena Launiainen. The discussions focused on the progress of the Sino-Finnish cooperative educational institution application, the advancement of cooperation projects in Nursing and Rehabilitation Physical Therapy, the arrangement of summer research programs for our students in Finland, and future cooperation directions between the two schools. Both sides reached a consensus on the discussed topics, expressed confidence in future cooperation, and agreed to advance all work in an orderly manner.
The Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences Alliance was established by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture and is part of the Global Pilot project. The alliance consists of 20 Finnish universities of applied sciences, with 90% of all Finnish universities of applied sciences joining the alliance. The current coordinating universities of the alliance are Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences, Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, and Laurea University of Applied Sciences, with the alliance office located at Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences.
After visiting Laurea University of Applied Sciences, the delegation successively visited the Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences Alliance, Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences, and Aalto University. During the visit to the Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences Alliance, the delegation met with Deputy Director Pasi Hellman to understand the main functions of the university alliance and teacher training programs, focusing on the cooperative project between our school and Laurea University of Applied Sciences, and received support from the university alliance. The alliance office is located within the Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences campus, which the delegation also visited, learning about the basic situation of the university. Finally, the delegation visited Aalto University, where the deans of our School of Medical Instruments and School of Rehabilitation had in-depth exchanges with Aalto University experts on the application of big data and artificial intelligence in the field of medical rehabilitation and invited Aalto University experts to visit our school for exchange and cooperation.
The Bavarian University Alliance represents more than 30 public universities and institutions in the state. Bavaria is a leader in scientific research, and the alliance members include 9 national comprehensive universities, 17 national universities of applied sciences, 12 Max Planck Institutes (basic research field), 6 Fraunhofer Institutes (applied research field), and other renowned research institutions. The main disciplines include medicine, engineering science, informatics, agriculture, economics, and law.
President Wu Tao attended the Sino-German Presidents' Joint Conference hosted by the Bavarian University Alliance. The conference was attended by presidents from more than a dozen universities of applied sciences in Bavaria and seven Chinese universities. The conference focused on discussing future cooperation mechanisms and directions. During the meeting, President Wu Tao introduced the educational situation of our school to the participating German universities and had in-depth communication with the president of the ASIIN certification body, actively promoting the ASIIN certification of our two majors and inviting the ASIIN certification president to visit our school in the second half of the year.
Under the organization of the university alliance, our delegation also visited universities such as Munich University of Applied Sciences. Munich University of Applied Sciences is a public university located in Munich, the capital of Bavaria, Germany, established in 1971. It offers undergraduate and master's programs in fields such as electronic technology, nursing, optics/optometry, mechanical engineering, engineering, chemistry, economics, economic engineering, informatics, physics, and transportation engineering. Among these, the most renowned majors at Munich University of Applied Sciences are economic engineering, electronic and information technology, and informatics. It is the largest university of applied sciences in Bavaria and ranks second in Germany, following Cologne University of Applied Sciences. In the well-known CHE ranking of German higher education development centers, the Faculty of Economics, the Faculty of Electronic Technology, and the Faculty of Informatics have consistently been in leading positions. In the university ranking conducted by the German economic weekly, the major of economic engineering ranks second.
During the visit to Munich University of Applied Sciences, our delegation gave a comprehensive introduction to our university's majors and focused on discussing future exchange and cooperation intentions in the fields of Medical Instrumentation, Nursing and Health Management, and Rehabilitation. Subsequently, we also toured the campus, learning about the basic situation of running the relevant majors and student services on campus.
This visit actively promotes the construction of international cooperation projects and the expansion of cooperative resources, which is an action to implement the key work of international exchange for the year 2024. The visit achieved significant results. After the visit, the university will actively promote the application for international cooperative education, deepen comprehensive cooperation with the visited institutions, effectively implement international certification for relevant majors, and further enhance the level of internationalization of the university.