Posted on: 2019-08-31
From July 7 to July 15, 2019, the College of Communications Engineering (CCE) organized a short-term student exchange program to carry out overseas study and exchange activities in the UK, for the purposes of speeding up building Jilin University as a first-class university with first-level disciplines, broadening students' horizons and enhancing their academic communication skills, learning the advanced technologies in overseas universities and experiencing the intense academic atmosphere in the world’s first-class universities. The successful 9-day exchange program, which attracted a total of 27 teachers and students, included trips to the Queen Mary University in London, Leicester University, Birmingham University, University of Salford and Oxford University.
The delegation first visited the Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). Professor Gao Yue and his team introduced the history and research projects of the QMUL and showed the delegation around the internal laboratories with detailed explanations. This informative and rewarding trip has helped foster a better understanding of the research directions and underlying principles and pointed out a relatively clear path of overseas study for our students.
The next destination was the University of Leicester. The teachers from the Leicester University introduced the university’s history and their preferential policies for our students to study there, which effectively helped the delegation members in application and future scientific research. In addition, the delegation also attended several courses by professors and lecturers in the university. The teachers briefed the team on the scientific research projects and the great contributions of the university and provided detailed answers to the questions raised. The team members were deeply captivated by the strong academic atmosphere.
Our next trip was the University of Birmingham at a time that coincided with its graduation ceremony. The teachers at the university showed the team around the campus, and introduced the traditional activities, its history, major strong disciplines, discipline development, campus culture, and special policies of the university. Through the event, the students got a taste of the rich campus activities and were captivated by strong academic atmosphere there. In class, the professors and the team members exchanged ideas with each other in a relaxed and light manner. The visit ended with both informative and rewarding results.
The next stop was the University of Salford. Dr. Theo Theodoridis from the Department of Science, Engineering and Environment showed the team around the beautiful campus and led us to visit his laboratory, where he briefed students on the Kuka robotic arm for slot-making work and the AI-based ROS robot. In the lab, the students watched the videos demonstrating how the robot arm worked and its working principle, before being ushered by Dr. Theo Theodoridis into a smart home room, where the students learned about the AI-based robots. The "smart" robots not only inspired great interest in students but equipped them with a better understanding of intelligent robots. The students asked many questions and received detailed answers from Dr Theo. Finally, the team also learned about the principle of vehicle following system with a simulation, watched the driverless car, and were deeply amazed by the power of modern technology.
Apart from the trips to the Queen Mary University of London, the University of Leicester, the University of Birmingham and the University of Salford, the team also visited the campus of the University of Oxford and witnessed its charm, as it was integrated into the city with the streets running through the time-honored campus.
This program has not only strengthened our friendship with the Queen Mary University of London, the University of Leicester, the University of Birmingham and the University of Salford but laid a sound foundation for future cooperation and exchanges. It has also broadened the international vision and sharpened scientific research ability of our undergraduates, preparing them for the future overseas study and intercultural communication. In addition, the team had the first taste of many promising research projects and directions, witnessed the rigorous scientific attitudes of the British universities and professors, which widened our horizons and our knowledge base, and inspired strong interest in study and scientific research. The team will build on lessons and experience and become more involved in future study and academic research.
