In the afternoon of October 19th, SLU Pudong campus witnessed the successful hosting of “the International University Leaders Forum”. Under the theme of “New Epoch, New Finance, New Education: Development Trends and Challenges of Higher Financial Education” The forum attracted about 500 presidents, scholars, experts, faculty or student delegates from more than 20 universities located in China, the US, the UK, Japan, Czech, and Bulgaria, to join their hands for the inspiring exploration of future development related to higher financial education, as well as a blueprint aimed at constructing efficient communication and collaboration. Prof. Li Shiping, Chair of University Council gave the welcome address, and President Tang Haiyan made the keynote speech. The forum was hosted by Vice President Gu Xiaomin.
During the welcome address, Li Shiping expressed his welcome and appreciation on behalf of the university to all the leaders and distinguished guests who presented the forum, followed by a brief retrospection of the milestones during the 90-year history of our university. He impressed the audience by broaching the newly emerged difficulties and challenges of higher education under the diversified and dynamic circumstances both in and out of the country. He emphasized the influence brought by China’s more active involvement in the global economic and financial arena, coupled with in-depth technical innovation and a wider spectrum of new business models shooting up, and it’s high time we should respond to those new momentums. The forum invited experts from various countries, with the aim of brain-storming on major subjects about upgrading and innovating higher financial education, and such an inspiring event is also the best demonstration of how universities could better serve the economic and social development. Li spoke highly of this forum by hoping for enhancing friendship, deepening mutual understanding, expanding collaboration, and complementing each other in moving forward the higher financial education.
In his keynote speech “Character-building, knowledge and application”, Tang Haiyan accentuated the historical mission shouldered by universities in Shanghai’s pursuing of becoming an outstanding metropolitan and accomplishing the goal of “Five Centers”. It’s high time that practical financial universities should constantly facilitate reform and innovation, integrate research, teaching, and practice, strengthen inner competence, and try to be the incubator of high-quality practitioners with honesty, experimental ability, innovation and international vision. He also reiterated that “honesty” should be the essence of our education philosophy, and we should equip our students with dynamic adaptability along with professional competitive edges. Students’ personal development should be the foundation of our education, together with the 3 pillars of honesty, self-exploration, and practical experience, we can add new layers to the infrastructure of innovative higher financial education.
The heated topic on the forum was: what are the challenges in front of today’s higher financial education? What are the solutions against them? The answer may lie in the proposals from forum guests.
New requirements on higher financial education raised by the new epoch of an information society
Huang Youfang, President of Shanghai Maritime University pointed out that, an eligible university in the new epoch could never paid too much attention on meeting the requirements occurred from advanced technologie and humanity arts. The most effective way to achieve that is to restructure the knowledge system of students, educate students with more humanity nutrition, push the quality of our graduates to a higher level, and achieve sustainable development of graduates with the help of co-projects with enterprises.
Zhuo Zhi, President of The Southwestern University of Finance and Economics gave a insightful talk with the topic of “Stimulating the development of China’s higher financial education under the new social conditions”, in which he listed emerging urges accompanied by the new era, new financial world, new education system from two dimensions: current trends and possible strategies of higher financial education.
According to Ding Zhongming, President of Anhui University of Finance and Economics, the new generation of information technology has added catalysts to industrial revolution and consequential social and economic changes, and such influence will be continued into the future. Financial universities, who are responsible for cultivating professionals, guiding and supporting social development, should spare no efforts in the exploration of leap-forward development.
Yong Heming, President of Guangdong University of Finance, contributed analyses on how the new epoch influence higher financial education from aspects including the features and positioning of practice-based universities, current situation and problems, future design of those universities, as well as assessment system.
New realms of financial segments call for demanding standards to higher financial education
Kevin G Craig, Vice President of Niagara University, the US, analyzed the domino effect caused by financial development on people’s daily life, business operation, and higher education. He also shared his expectation of higher financial education with the audience.
Ivan Lashcov, President of Tsenov Academy of Economics, Svishtov, Bulgaria, initiated a more profound inter-college exchange with foreign counterparts, which has been unanimously understood among Eastern-European universities as an effective way to encounter new challenges from the ever-changing society.
Sachihiko Harashin, President of Chiba University of Commerce, Japan, made a speech under the topic “Sustainable development and ethnics of higher financial education”, to further emphasize that only by international collaboration can we find a way out of the fierce competition global arena, and prepare financial talents with global visions.
Wang Junquan, Vice President of Providence University, PU, introduced the latest development of higher education of the Taiwan Region, followed by a proposal of in-depth collaboration of teaching and research exchanges with the core of complementing each other by giving full play of teaching and research.
New policies of financial universities contribute new path for higher financial education
Xiao Chunyu, Party Committee Secretary of Dongbei University of Finance and Economics, shared the philosophies and experience in disciplinary construction and talent cultivation. He also showed his perspective that disciplinary construction is the engine to push an university forward, as well as the source of vigor that determines an university’s fate. So basically, disciplinary construction can best depict characteristics and capabilities of an university.
Zhou Jiansong, Party Committee Secretary of Zhejiang Financial College, introduced what they have learnt from educating financial practitioners, and the most important thing is to strengthen the tie with financial institutions, thus to form a close strategic relationship under the common aim of fostering capable and skilled financial practitioners.
Pan Hui, Vice President of Guangxi University of Finance and Economics, brought the topic of bringing a modern apprentice system into financial universities, together with constant optimization of disciplinary and scientific structure, thus to facilitate the whole quality of disciplines, the influence and social awareness of the university.
Zhang Xiaohui, Vice President of Changchun College of Finance and Economics, introduced latest development of their disciplinary development and pursuing of being an applied university. His compared disciplinary construction to “the nose of a cow”, since it is related to all aspects of the university operation, and is the key to a university’s inner building and long-term mission.
The International University Leaders Forum served as one of the series activities to celebrate the 90th anniversary of SLU. From the exchanging and collaboration with domestic and foreign counterparts, we have not only showed our educating philosophy of “Character-building, knowledge and application”, but also reassured our confidence of high-quality applied professionals with the features of “honest, practical, innovative, and provisional”. This forum has been proved to be a milestone on our journey of being a high-quality, application-oriented university of finance and economics.
Photographed by Xu Meiling and Zhang Jiawei
