CETV:

Engineering technology is a significant force influencing world and national development. Whether it's the high-speed rail network or the Shenzhou spacecraft, these advances have greatly improved our lives. We have noticed that China has made considerable efforts to cultivate outstanding engineers in recent years. I would like to ask: What progress has been made so far, and what measures will be taken next? Thank you.

Huai Jinpeng:

Thank you for your question. I will address this. Outstanding engineers are one of the four types of personnel with expertise of strategic importance identified at the Central Talent Work Conference on Sept. 27, 2021. This conference led to the development of a training program for outstanding engineers, which we internally refer to as engineering master's and doctoral students. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the training of engineers has undergone long-term development. In the face of new circumstances, particularly the technological revolution and industrial transformation, it is crucial to enhance new quality productive forces and stimulate innovation more effectively to better serve economic and social development and achieve Chinese modernization. The MOE is promoting the reform of outstanding engineer training, which holds significant importance. 

Talent cultivation involves not only creating knowledge and scientific discovery but also solving technological challenges, improving production capacity and continuously developing products and services. The goal of cultivating outstanding engineers is precisely to achieve technological innovation, advance the integration of science and education, promote industry-education integration and facilitate industrial iteration and upgrading. This is crucial for developing a contingent of personnel with expertise of strategic importance for quality-driven socioeconomic development. Cultivating outstanding engineers is a key initiative that focuses on national strategies, serves Chinese modernization, strengthens international cooperation and exchange, and cultivates talent. Notably, outstanding engineers have become a significant marker of social development. In January this year, for the first time, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council launched the National Engineer Awards to honor engineers who have made outstanding contributions. The MOE regards the accelerated cultivation of outstanding engineers as an important political task, leveraging the exemplary and leading role of "Double First-Class" universities, steadily promoting industry-education integration, and continuously advancing the cultivation of top-notch innovative talent. We are using deep engagement in innovation, industrial development and economic progress as driving forces to enhance the quality of training for engineering master's and doctoral students. The main approaches include the following aspects:

First, we have continued to deepen the transformation of the engineer training system. I mentioned just now that the integration of general education and industry provides a pivotal foundation for and an inevitable path in the cultivation of innovative talent, especially outstanding engineers. Therefore, motivating the industrial sector and universities serves as a very important institutional design and policy to provide solutions. Under the guidance of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, the MOE has worked with the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) to support the establishment of two batches of 32 national graduate colleges for engineers by Double First-Class universities and state-owned enterprises directly under the central government. To meet China's strategic needs, we have made concerted efforts to set up four national innovation institutes of outstanding engineers in Beijing, Shanghai and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, which are located in three centers for innovation deployed by the state, namely the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. By designing the above-mentioned organization mechanism and structural network, the MOE has worked with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), the SASAC, the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) and the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) to support collaboration between industries, universities and research institutes and the establishment of China's outstanding engineer training consortia by universities, enterprises and national research institutions. Universities, local governments and research institutions have worked together to set up a network and an organizational structure with collaborative development among enterprises, universities and research institutions, and cooperation and coordination among relevant departments.

Second, we have innovated in building an engineer training mechanism that is well-integrated with both general education and industry. Just now, Mr. Wu introduced that training undergraduate students is in line with the industrial structure. So, what is the focus of training outstanding engineers as innovators? From enrollment and the curriculum system, to coordinated cooperation between tutors from industry and academia, and from evaluation criteria to the efficient transformation and eventual definition of intellectual property, these are all very important and provide a key path to setting up a full-chain system with collaboration between industries, universities and research institutes and to fully participate in the training of high-caliber professionals. In this aspect, we should give full play to the initiative of both universities and enterprises and promote joint enrollment, training, subject selection and outcome sharing, achieving integrated cultivation with features including the mobilization of teachers, course sharing, integrated platforms and policy coordination. The aim is to cultivate talent, and serve national economic and social development. Reform of the training mechanism is an active response of higher education to the national economic and social development and a basic requirement of Chinese modernization.  

Third, we have focused on achieving breakthroughs in the crucial links of engineer training. We have organized Double First-Class universities to collaborate with enterprises to develop over 200 key courses focusing on 18 key fields. Like with courses for undergraduate students, the key courses of engineer training do not only impart knowledge, but also build up capacity. Especially when it comes to important industrial issues, the new curriculum system, practice system and innovation capacity help students build competency and improve their performance, thus forming a new training approach. In terms of faculty development, 32 national graduate colleges for engineers have hired over 20,000 teachers from enterprises, which is a systematic, well-organized, well-targeted and important method of cooperation with collaboration between industries, universities and research institutes in the cultivation of postgraduates and engineers. The tutor double-engagement model, dual selection of teaching and the processing pattern of courses are all important innovations. After the adoption of the law on academic degrees, the basic requirement for engineering degree applications for masters and doctorates has been extended to practical reports, patents and innovative achievements, which is an important breakthrough of reform in our evaluation standard system. The law provides a legal basis for talent training that is adapted to economic and social development, and that also ensures the reforms have a solid basis, breaking down the paper-centered assessment system and taking valuable contributions as the important measure of assessment. We especially encourage and support enterprises to propose subjects and jointly study them with universities. For three years, about 5,000 practical questions have been submitted from the business world. What does "training talent in creating innovation" mean? It should be achieving innovations in the process of solving practical problems, which also helps realize the talent training. We always say that we should identify problems when making innovation, and train talent when solving these problems. Thus, we should train talent in the process of solving the problems.   

I want to inform you all that we will convene a working processing conference for outstanding engineer training with collaboration between industries and universities, according to the arrangement of “semiannual exchanges and “annual reviews.” The first batch of graduate students have entered enterprises as interns and doctoral students have worked in relevant industries. The current situation shows that the purposeful and well-organized cooperation between industries, universities and research institutes has important practical meaning for training outstanding engineers. In the process, new problems will arise, which we should research and think about, better adapting to the industrial changes and fostering new quality productive forces. We will publish China's outstanding engineer training standards and increase international cooperation, providing Chinese solutions and wisdom to global engineering education. Thank you.