In the morning of 30 July 2018, the closing ceremony of the first International Academic Summer School was held in the School of Basic Medicine. The Vice President of Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), the Party Secretary of Tongji Medical College (TMC) and the Dean of the School of Basic Medicine, Professor Chen Jianguo, attended the ceremony, which was presided by Professor Wang Fang, the Vice Dean of the School.

Professor Wang first introduced the participants and summarised the activities held in this programme. As the highlight of the ceremony, the four exchange students from the University of Birmingham (UoB) in the UK, Joanna Marsden, Megan Munro, Abinaya Pakianathan and Shirley Wong, each gave a 10-minute presentation on their experiences in TMC. They shared their feelings working alongside PhD students and postdocs in the labs and showcased their gains upon shadowing the students’ studies in some well-prepared PowerPoint slides. The students also expressed their deepest gratitude to the college for offering this valuable learning opportunity.

In his address, Professor Chen congratulated the four students on successfully completing the summer school and expressed his gratitude to all the professors, student volunteers and affiliated departments for their hard work in organising it. He claimed that the School of Basic Medicine’s first International Academic Summer School was a great success and praised the outstanding performance of the four students. This programme has not only allowed them to learn some basic experimental techniques and theories behind various medical disciplines, but has also advanced their understanding of China, particularly the city of Wuhan. In addition, the students have built precious friendships with their peers in the labs. This summer school is the first international academic summer school held by the School of Basic Medicine. Its success has strengthened the international cooperation between HUST and UoB and enhanced the understanding between the two universities, thereby opening the gates for future cooperation and exchanges. The ceremony was then followed by the presentation of certificates to the exchange students by Professor Chen.

     As a mentor for the international students, Professor Guo Zheng, the head of the Department of Genetics, stated that he was very delighted to see the success of this programme. He applauded the students on their impressive performance throughout the three weeks and wished them best of luck in their future studies. Likewise, Long Lihong and Peng Huiming, representatives of the teaching staff from the School of Basic Medicine, together with student volunteers including He Jingang, Li Hao, Ke Xiao, Xue Shige, Qiao Li, Peng Zhengxin, all complimented the students on their hard work in this summer school. The ceremony was concluded with the presentation of souvenirs from Hubei to students by their respective professors. In return, the four exchange students gave their student mentors a thank you note written in Chinese calligraphy as a token of appreciation for their patience and guidance throughout their time in Tongji.

This summer school has been a great success with the care and support of the leaders of both institutions. The exchange students have gained an insight into the School of Basic Medicine and leant the frontiers of basic medical science, whilst the programme itself has enhanced the intercollegiate exchange between HUST and UoB and built an excellent foundation for future international summer schools.

In July 2013, our School was selected by the Ministry of Education to be one of the pioneering institutions to invite foreign students to study abroad in China. On 20 May 2017, our School signed the intercollegiate cooperation agreement with UoB. The School of Basic Medicine adheres to the concept of open education and is actively involved in all-rounded and multi-level international exchanges and cooperation. The two universities have been conducting collaboration and exchanges in teaching and academics since 2017. In 2017 and 2018, our School has sent a total of 21 undergraduate students to the UK to attend the Birmingham International Summer School. On 9 July 2018, UoB first sent 4 student representatives to our School for this summer school. In November 2018, our School will be sending young teachers on behalf of Associate Professors Tang Ke and Yan Lei, to participate in a workshop for young scholars at UoB. We hope to maintain the good cooperation with the UoB in the long run.