University of Surrey announces expansion into China

The President of the Dongbei University of Finance and Economics (DUFE) Ai Hongde and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Surrey Professor Christopher Snowden have announced the official launch of the new Surrey International Institute, DUFE (SII,DUFE) with both undergraduate and postgraduate teaching programmes starting from September 2007.

SII,DUFE has been established to provide students from China and any other country the opportunity to study full-time for a University of Surrey degree or a dual degree offered by both Surrey and DUFE. It is believed that this is only the second project of this kind involving a UK university that has received Chinese Government approval. The programmes offered will be at both undergraduate and postgraduate level and will be in subjects aligned with Management, Computing and Entrepreneurship. The programme schedules will replicate those offered in Guildford thus offering Chinese students the opportunity to study part of the programme in the UK and Surrey students based at Guildford the opportunity to study in China. The ability to experience the different cultures will be a great advantage to all students who participate.

The opening of SII marks the first step in the future development of the University of Surrey. Professor Christopher Snowden commented, "The opening of SII is a key moment in the future development of the University of Surrey. The opening of the Institute is the first step in our plans for international expansion. We are aiming over the next ten years to develop Surrey into an international brand with several Institutes around the world, including China. For the university to thrive in the 21st century we see it as vital that we can attract students from around the world and compete not only in the UK but on a global level."

The teaching will be in English and will be provided by a mix of international and local Chinese academics from within their field of study. By far the majority of the teaching will be taught by international teachers specifically recruited for their expertise and by UK based academic staff that will be seconded to the Dalian campus for the period of their teaching. Full student support will be available to ensure that the student experience is second-to-none. All students will be offered accommodation on the DUFE campus and all University facilities such as the Library and Sports Halls will be available to SII,DUFE students.

DUFE has 16,000 full-time students studying for undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. It is one of the top Universities in China and is ranked second as a specialist University, with students required to achieve some of the highest scores in the entrance examinations.

Professor Snowden further commented, "We are pleased that we can announce this collaboration with one of the leading Chinese universities. We will be able to ensure that the same exceptionally high standards maintained at the campus in Guildford are also reflected at SII. We see this as the start of a bright new future for Surrey and look forward to continuing and implementing our 10 year strategy to make Surrey a leading university in the world.’

DUFE is located in the city of Dalian on the southern tip of the Liaoning Peninsula. Surrounded by mountains and with the Yellow Sea to the East and the Bohai Sea to the West, Dalian enjoys a pleasant climate of mild winters and warm summers.

Dalian is an up-and-coming, vibrant city with a history going back some 6,000 years. Today it is a financial and IT centre and has won many accolades as the ‘Fashion City’, the ‘Soccer City’, and the ‘Flagship of Ship-building in China’ to name but a few. It is also recognised as the most ‘liveable city’ in China, and locals and students can visit beautiful beaches, elegant parks, and a myriad of interesting statues which add colour to the city’s atmosphere.

Media enquiries: Peter La, Press Office at the University of Surrey, Tel: 01483 689191 or E-mail: p.la@surrey.ac.uk