On November 8, 2025, the 20th Anniversary Theme Conference of the Sino-European School of Technology at Shanghai University was successfully held in the Lecture Hall of the Library at the Baoshan Campus. Themed "Twenty Years of Craftsmanship: Integrating China and Europe, Igniting the Future with Intelligence," the conference comprehensively reviewed the college's twenty-year development journey, showcased the fruitful achievements of Sino-French engineering education cooperation, and jointly looked ahead to the future.

Distinguished guests attending the conference included Mr. Joan Valadou, Consul General of the French Consulate General in Shanghai; Professor Claire Rossi, President of the Université de Technologie de Compiègne (UTC), France; Professor Ghislain Montavon, President of the Université de Technologie de Belfort-Montbéliard (UTBM), France; Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and President of Shanghai University, Professor Liu Changsheng; Professor Chen Cailian, Dean of the Paris Elite Institute of Technology at Shanghai Jiao Tong University; Professor Zhang Jiang, Party Secretary of the Sino-French Engineer School at Beihang University, along with other leaders from domestic Sino-French engineering schools. Also present were corporate representatives from companies such as Schneider Electric, officials from various university departments, and college leadership, totaling over 100 guests.

At 9:30 AM, accompanied by melodious string quartet music, a retrospective video on the 20-year development of EST opened the theme conference. Professor Yu Xuemei, Vice President of Shanghai University and Dean of the Sino-European School of Technology, served as the moderator.

Guest Speeches: Discussing Cooperation and Anticipating the Future

Academician Liu Changsheng, President of Shanghai University; Mr. Joan Valadou, Consul General of the French Consulate General in Shanghai; and Professor Ghislain Montavon, President of UTBM, delivered speeches respectively. They affirmed the achievements the college has made in Sino-French engineering education over the past two decades and expressed expectations for future cooperation.

In his address, President Liu Changsheng emphasized that the Sino-European School of Technology is a crucial component of Shanghai University's promotion of internationalized education and deepening of industry-education integration. He stated that the university will continue to support the college in exploring high-level Sino-foreign cooperative education pathways to provide strong support for cultivating excellent engineers.

Consul General Joan Valadou remarked that EST is a model of Sino-French higher education cooperation and a vivid embodiment of Sino-French friendship. He expressed hope that the college would continue to play a bridging role in promoting educational cooperation and cultural exchanges between China and France.

Professor Ghislain Montavon reviewed the twenty-year cooperation history between the two universities, noting that both sides have learned from each other and advanced synergistically in educational philosophy, curriculum construction, and scientific research innovation, laying a solid foundation for the college's development.

Review of College Development: Deepening Cooperation and Achieving Remarkable Results

Professor Wang Yong, Executive Dean of the Sino-European School of Technology, presented a report reviewing the college's 20-year development. He outlined the college's developmental trajectory and phased achievements across four dimensions: talent cultivation, scientific research cooperation, industry-education integration, and cultural exchange. Since 2005, the college has cultivated over 3,000 graduates, many of whom have become technical backbones and innovative forces in fields such as high-end manufacturing, energy management, and digital technology. By combining the French elite engineer education model with local Chinese realities, the college has constructed a distinctive talent cultivation system, with evident effectiveness in teaching, research, and industry-education integration.

School-Enterprise Cooperation: Collaborative Education and Joint Development

As a core element of the French engineer training system, school-enterprise cooperation is a defining feature and key driver of the college's development. The college's 20-year growth would not have been possible without the long-term support of its corporate partners. To express gratitude to these partners and to foster continued collaboration in future operations, the college held an on-site signing ceremony with representatives from Dassault Systèmes, Eaton China & North Asia, Agila Technologies (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Oukejia (Shanghai) Automotive Electronic Equipment Co., Ltd., Si科 Software Systems Co., Ltd., FRENCH TECH SHANGHAI, S-Innovation China, Schneider Electric (China) Co., Ltd., Saint-Gobain Research (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Yanfeng International Automotive Technology Co., Ltd., Hanjie Group, Sanyou Medical Devices Co., Ltd., Mipo (Shanghai) Software Technology Co., Ltd., Shanghai Qiantang Communication Technology Co., Ltd., and the Shanghai Chief Engineers Association. Appreciation plaques were also presented to the corporate representatives. These partners deeply engage in the college's core teaching segments by providing educational funds, internship positions, and innovation practice platforms, as well as through lecturing, co-building courses, and supporting innovation competitions, collectively enhancing students' core competitiveness.

Subsequently, Mr. Zhang Dongjin, Senior Technical Manager at Schneider Electric (China) Co., Ltd., speaking on behalf of the corporate partners, introduced Schneider's practices with the college in technical seminars, internship base construction, and innovative project cooperation. He affirmed the comprehensive capabilities of EST students in cross-cultural communication and engineering practice, expressing commitment to further advancing synergistic development in talent cultivation and technological innovation between the enterprise and the college.

Launch of "Igniting the Future with Intelligence": Advancing Together to Open a New Chapter

Twenty years mark both a milestone and a new starting point. Building on the foundations of the past two decades, the Sino-European School of Technology will continue to strive in the field of engineer education to begin a new chapter. President Liu Changsheng of Shanghai University, UTC President Claire Rossi, UTBM President Ghislain Montavon, Professor Gong Xiaolu from the Université de Technologie de Troyes (UTT), Mr. Philippe Obry representing Agila Technologies (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., EST Executive Dean Wang Yong, and French Dean Fabien Pfaender jointly launched the "Igniting the Future with Intelligence" initiative. This launch signifies the college's further commitment to innovating engineering education models and deepening the integration of industry, academia, and research.

Over the past twenty years, EST has established distinctive educational features characterized by complementary advantages in Sino-French engineering education and synergistic sharing of school-enterprise resources. Taking the 20th anniversary as a new starting point, the college will optimize its talent cultivation structure, expand pathways for scientific research cooperation, and deepen mechanisms for industry-education integration, continuing to explore ways to cultivate engineering talents adapted to future industrial demands.

College Development Forum: Focusing on Frontiers and Planning Development Together

On the afternoon of the 8th, the college hosted the "EST 20th Anniversary - College Development Forum" in the Kuangdi Lecture Hall on the 6th floor of the Qian Weichang Library. Themed "Outlook for Excellent Engineer Education in China by 2030: Transformation, Artificial Intelligence, Sustainability, and Educational Challenges," the forum invited guests including the President of the Université de Technologie de Compiègne, the French Dean of the Sino-French Aviation School at Beihang University, and the French Dean of the Sino-European Aviation Engineer School at Civil Aviation University of China to participate in discussions.

The forum facilitated in-depth exchanges on key topics such as strategic vision and excellent engineers, the integration of Sino-French education models, artificial intelligence and engineering employment prospects, accreditation and quality assurance, and industrial synergy.

Alumni Council Re-election and Alumni Reunion Activities:
Consolidating Consensus and Deepening Cooperation

At 14:00, the 2025 Annual Alumni Reunion and Alumni Branch Re-election Conference of the Sino-European School of Technology was held in Conference Room 606, Building 6, East Zone. The meeting successfully elected members of the second Alumni Council of EST and organized a series of vibrant alumni activities. The alumni forum, themed "Twenty Years of Journey Together: Igniting the Future with Intelligence," facilitated experience sharing and frontier discussions among alumni to consolidate strength. The corporate forum, centered on "Industry-Education Integration and Collaborative Innovation," invited multiple corporate representatives to exchange views with faculty and students on talent cultivation and technical cooperation. These two forums further deepened the school-enterprise collaborative education mechanism, gathering broad consensus and collective strength for the college's development.