The Autumn of 2015 sees the 10th cohort of Chinese and international students arriving at the Sino-British College, USST with hopes and expectations for an exciting and fulfilling university experience.
This year nearly 600 high school graduates with excellent academic performance have been accepted by SBC. The record number of domestic applicants for 2015/16 confirms that SBC has already been one of the most popular destinations for students who wish to receive international higher education in their own country. The overall quality of domestic student intakes continues to rise rapidly with 82% of students achieving Tiers 1 and 2 scores in Gaokao (the national university entrance exams in China).
In particular, the 2015 SBC T1 Scholarship Programme attracted a number of outstanding Chinese high school graduates for applying. A T-week programme was also run from the 10th to the 16th of August for the purpose of helping participants to learn knowledge and skills which will be of value to their future studies and careers.
Amongst all new students, there are above 40 international students taking the total number of enrolled students from abroad to over 100, representing about 30 countries and regions around the world. Our overseas students see SBC as a great opportunity to study for a UK-accredited degree, while learning Chinese language and experiencing Chinese culture in Shanghai, China’s most modern and dynamic city.
On the afternoon of 14th September, two Welcome Ceremonies were held in the presence of all new students, parents and the academic and administrative team at SBC. The Ceremonies were hosted by two SBC students: Li Hao from China, Year 4 Engineering and Lucy Espagnol from France, Year 1 Business.
On behalf of the College, Professor Linda Liu, Vice-Dean of SBC extended a warm welcome to this special cohort of new students. She said in her speech: “We are committed to providing an international learning environment for students and developing our students as independent learners with a high level of social adaptability, employability and multi-cultural awareness.”
Two distinguished guests were invited to attend the event and speak to our new students: Mr. Matthew Knowles, Area Director East China, British Council and Consul (Cultural and Education), Cultural and Education Section of the British Consulate-General in Shanghai, and Mr. Phil Roebuck, Executive Director of the British Chamber of Commerce Shanghai.
In his speech, Mr. Knowles expressed that SBC has mixed diversity, representing many different parts of China and different nationalities on campus. Therefore, we have the opportunity to reflect together on those huge questions about the priority of our generation and the issues that we should try to tackle.
As a great supporter for the development of SBC, Mr. Roebuck was invited to speak to our new students about the linkage between SBC and the British Chamber of Commerce Shanghai. He said: “I have a strong relationship with SBC. I'm very pleased to see SBC grow in size and achievement year on year.”
The highlight of the welcome event was the joint speech given by five new student representatives. They are Wan Yimin, Qu Yang, Yan Yiyi, Wang Chunyi and Xiao Hanting. They shared their views and plans for university life as well as their dreams and expectations for personal development in the future.
Finally, the Welcome Ceremonies were ended with the announcement of the result for the online activity “Hit the Headline”. “Hit the Headline” was a social media photo competition offered to all new students as an opportunity for making new friends at SBC. Qian Yiwei, winner of the activity with 140 ‘likes’ on Wechat, is a graduate of the Affiliated High School of Hangzhou Normal University and is now studying Electrical and Electronic Engineering at SBC.
