The Department of Biomedical Engineering held its first scholarship signing ceremony at 7 p.m. on September 27, 2016. This was followed by an information session for students. The event was attended by Dean X. Edward Guo, Executive Dean Chen Fangyi, Li Xu of the Office of International Cooperation, Luo Ling of the Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and Mr Chao Long, Chairman of the Shenzhen Qianhai Jingxi Funds Sales and Marketing Co. Ltd, together with some 30 undergraduate students.

The signing ceremony was to officially acknowledge and appreciate the Shenzhen Qianhai Jingxi Funds Sales and Marketing Co. Ltd for its generous donation of 100,000 yuan to establish the “Jingxi Scholarship” in our department. Both the Dean and Executive Dean expressed their grateful thanks for the company’s support of our department. In a formal gesture of gratitude, a certificate of appreciation was presented to Mr Chao Long, chairman of the company. In response, the chairman said that by establishing a scholarship in our department, he hoped to build a lasting relationship with the Southern University of Science and Technology. He intended to pay personal attention to the development of our department. The “Jingxi Scholarship” was the first scholarship to be set up in Biomedical Engineering and therefore has special significance in promoting student interest in the discipline. Twenty thousand yuan will be disbursed from the scholarship fund each year to give assistance to two students from each of Year 3 and Year 4. This may be the beginning of our efforts in canvassing support from society for the educational development of our students.

After the signing ceremony, teachers and students began an exchange session. There were undergraduate students from Year 3 and Year 4, as well as Year 1 and Year 2 students who were leaning towards specializing in Biomedical Engineering. Professors X. Edward Guo, Chen Fangyi, Tang Bin and Shi Peng, were on hand to answer student queries related to disciplinary learning, curriculum and overseas exchange programs. It was a very lively session, with much give-and-take between students and the professors. The activity was concluded at 8:30 p.m.

Now a word of introduction about our donor, Shenzhen Qianhai Jingxi Funds Sales and Marketing Co. Ltd. It was established in 2014, being a wholly owned subsidiary of the parent company Guangdong Jingxi Financial Holdings Co.Ltd. It was officially approved by the China Audit Commission and was granted a third party public funds sales license. The company’s vision is the securitization of traditional enterprises and the regularization of private capital. Through integrated banks, securities, trusts, public offerings and private fund sourcing, the company hopes to ride on the success of the internet, to launch both an online and offline marketing strategy to increase its market share, and offer investors a wide choice of high quality products, any time, any place.

Chaired by Prof X. Edward Guo, founding Dean of the department, a regular staff meeting took place in the Administration Building Conference Room on September 27, 2016. Also in attendance were Vice President Tang Tao, Executive Dean Chen Fangyi, and teaching staff Tang Bin, Shi Peng, Peng Cheng, Du E, Zhou Bin, Wang Dan, Chen Ying and Du Li.

The Dean introduced the staff to the departmental ethos of “3A”, i.e. Adventurous, Arduous and Amiable. He urged those present to be resourceful in problem-solving, to have an appetite for risk-taking, to show a gritty determination, and not least, to build a harmonious team spirit. He went on to explain the department’s planning in talent recruitment, research and teaching. He emphasized the importance of talent acquisition. Having acquired three professors to date, the department had met its hiring target for this year.

 

Vice President Tang Tao echoed the Dean’s ideas on development. He pointed out that our strategic thinking lies in encouraging healthy competition, even if it means “survival of the fittest”. He then spoke on the subject of joint nurturing of Master and Doctoral students, and in particular working out the fine points of our partnership with Columbia University in undertaking a joint M.A. and Ph.D. program in Biomedical Engineering. Finally, with input from other teaching staff, he discussed our philosophy in talent recruitment.

The last item on the agenda was a discussion of the 2017 budget. Other subjects were also touched upon, such as professional assessment, the Columbia University Project, method for the evaluation of scholarships, public relations Initiatives, and talent acquisition. The conclusion of the meeting was followed by the taking of a group photo.

Between 9^th and 15^th August, 2016, our department inaugurated its first Biomedical Engineering International Symposium. Presided over by our founding Dean, Prof X. Edward Guo, this blue-ribbon event attracted not only experts from our own department, but also representatives from industry and the world’s leading universities. Scholars in attendance included our President Prof Chen Shiyi, Professor Cheng Xin from the Materials Department, Executive Dean Chen Fangyi, Professors Tang Bin, Chen Fei and Wang Fei, as well as students from our department.

Brains at work

President Chen with a leader’s perspective

President Chen Shiyi began by briefing the delegates on the socioeconomic development in Shenzhen with its favorable environment for innovative entrepreneurship. He also spoke on his findings in his recent visit to the UK and the efforts the University has expended on its internationalization drive. He was hoping to cement a partnership with Columbia University,  in hopes of turbo-charging the growth and development of Biomedical Engineering at our University, and opening the door to fruitful exchange and collaboration with the world’s other institutions of higher learning. This can only be beneficial to the promotion of an international campus culture.

Intellectual Fireworks—the presenters and their presentations

Experts representing Columbia University, New York University Stony Brook, Duke University, Beijing University of Aviation and Aeronautics, University of Toronto, Georgia Tech, UC San Diego, Mechanics Institute of the Chinese Academy of Science, Sydney University, and Suzhou Innomed Medical Device Co. Ltd all gave their presentations in their field of expertise. This might be our first international symposium on Biomedical Engineering, but it had touched on the latest research results from various institutions of higher learning, as well as advances in medical devices and their application and a big-picture view of China’s policy towards biomedical engineering as it relates to life and living.

On July 23, 2016, a seminar on the strategic planning and development of Biomedical Engineering at our university, presided over by the department’s founding Dean Prof X. Edward Guo, was successfully held in conference room 301 in the Executive Building. It attracted no fewer than 18 bigwigs from government, industry and academia, including President Chen Shiyi, Dean Professor Xiao Guozhi of the Department of Biology, Professor Tian Yanqing, Deputy Director of the Department of Materials, Chen Fangyi, the department of Biomedical Engineering’s Executive Director, Associate Professor Tang Bin, Associate Professor Chen Fei, Associate Professor Tian Leilei of the Department of Materials, and leaders of the Ministry of Planning and Development, Ministry of International Cooperation and the staff of the Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen ET- Medical Technology Co. Ltd.

 

The first item on the agenda was the research report on Biomedical Engineering at our University. This represented the first time that professors in Biomedical Engineering had come together to map out our research direction and priorities and lay down a solid foundation for a joint declaration on biomedical engineering projects.

A brilliant presentation by Professors

The second item on the agenda was a mission and vision statement on the establishment of Biomedical Engineering Department from our leaders. Prof X. Edward Guo began by defining the vision behind the collaboration between SUST and Columbia University, and introduced the underlying 3A concept, 3A being Adventurous, Arduous and Amiable. This is the ideal to be upheld and adhered to by all staff and students.

Prof X. Edward Guo on the “3A” culture

President Chen Shiyi endorsed the 3A culture for Biomedical Engineering, putting forward his own expectations and requirements. The first is internationalization. This can be achieved through frequent exchange visits with world-class universities and peers, while piggybacking on our partnership with Columbia University. Aim high in launching a world-class faculty. The second is, be bold and proactive to achieve a leapfrog development. A talent assessment system must be in place to recruit and retain researchers who not only produce research papers, but who are dedicated to the core of research interests. We need to usher in innovative talents.  

President Chen Shiyi on his expectations of biomedical engineering

The third item is a brain-storming session. On the development of the Biomedical Engineering, Prof Xiao Guozhi is brimming with confidence. He pledged unconditional support by the Department of Biology for this new initiative, as well as research coordination in various fields. This was followed by a free-wheeling discussion by professors present on the key research direction, industrialization, internationalization, talent scouting, on top of  exchanges and cooperation at home and abroad.

Prof Xiao Guozhi on his vision for biomedical engineering

Finally, under the chairmanship of Prof X. Edward Guo, the participants hammered out a shorter term 2016/17 action plan, plus a longer five-year plan for the development of Biomedical Engineering, with an overarching developmental thinking.

Strategic Planning in action

President Chen Shiyi and biomedical engineering staff members

Seven of our Year-3 students served out their internship at Peking University’s Shenzhen Hospital from June 27 to July 22, 2016. Under the patient guidance of their tutor, the hospital’s medical engineer, the interns were assigned to the equipment section. There, they learned about equipment maintenance, purchasing and file management. This is the first time our students took part in external internship activities during the summer. Students enhanced their ability to apply their theoretical knowledge to real-life situations, thereby enriching their social experience and first-hand knowledge of work environment in society.

Formerly known as the Shenzhen City Center Hospital, Peking University’s Shenzhen Hospital is a modern comprehensive hospital funded and constructed by the Shenzhen Government. The hospital was completed and officially opened for service in late 1999. In September 2001, the Shenzhen Government entered into a partnership with Peking University and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. It was subsequently renamed “Peking University’s Shenzhen Hospital” and “Peking University’s Shenzhen Teaching Hospital”. As such, it was incorporated into the system of Peking University’s affiliated hospitals. By 2011, after being given the thumbs-up by the Guangdong Hospital Accreditation Committee, it was classified as a grade-3 First Class hospital.  

For the first time, on July 20, 2016, Prof X. Edward Guo, founding Dean of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, invited some student representatives from the class of 2013/14 to a sharing session. He was joined in this activity by Prof Chen Fangyi, his Executive Dean.

 

Driven by student questions, Prof Guo addressed the following areas of interest: First, he introduced the latest development at Columbia University’s Department of Biomedical Engineering, drawing particular attention to what students need to know about student life in the US. Secondly, he emphasized the importance of getting a handle on Cell Biology and Animal Physiology. In the process, he also gave them insights on how to tackle these subjects. Finally, while he was of the view that mastering Biomedical Engineering is no walk in the park, he offered a method for doing so. This greatly boosted student confidence in this difficult subject. Student interest and participation was notably high, with much give-and-take between them and the good professor.

 

This year, Prof Guo spearheaded the preparations for setting up the Biomedical Engineering Department at our University and began a comprehensive collaboration with its counterpart at Columbia University, including launching the student exchange mechanism. All in all, it was a highly productive and profitable encounter that was much anticipated and appreciated by the students.