An Inquiry into Higher Education: Building a World-class University at Nanjing Tech University

This book explores the pathways for Nanjing Tech University to develop into a world-class institution, while reflecting on broader issues in higher education. The book aims to distill insights from the author's extensive experience in academia and university administration (spanning institutions like Peking University, National University of Singapore, and Nanjing Tech). It focuses on Nanjing Tech's strategies, including its pursuit of being "comprehensive, research-oriented, and globalized," and addresses key aspects such as educational philosophy, disciplinary development, talent cultivation, innovation, internationalization, and team building.

Covering materials from 2012 to 2015 — including speeches, lectures, and essays — the scope encompasses diverse themes: moral education, institutional reform, collaborative innovation, talent recruitment, and the integration of academia with industry. It also reflects on the university's historical legacy, current challenges, and aspirations, offering a holistic view of its efforts to enhance academic excellence, social impact, and global standing. Ultimately, the book serves as a record of Nanjing Tech's growth and an exploration of universal principles in higher education development.

The book will showcase China's progress and achievements in its transition from a major player in higher education to a global leader in the field. It introduces the philosophy of building a socialist higher education system with Chinese characteristics, promotes traditional Chinese culture and contemporary Chinese values worldwide, and facilitates mutual learning between Chinese and international higher education concepts as well as cultural and civilizational exchanges, thus contributing ultimately to building a global community with a shared future for mankind.

Professor HUANG Wei is Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and International Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) and National Academy of Engineering of USA (NAE). He is an eminent scientist in the area of organic optoelectronics and flexible electronics. He is also the General Director of the State Key Laboratory of Flexible Electronics, Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics (FSCFE) of the Ministry of Education, and the Basic Science Center for Flexible Electronics of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. He is also the Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), the Optical Society of America (OSA), the Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE), the Singapore National Institute of Chemistry (SNIC), and President of the Federation of Engineering Institutions of Asia and the Pacific (FEIAP), and Senior Adviser to the President and Member of the Executive Council of the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO).

In the area of organic optoelectronics and flexible electronics as well as nanoscience, he has made a large amount of systematic and innovative achievements and has published more than 1000 papers as the first author or corresponding author in Nature, Nature Materials, Nature Photonics, Nature Nanotechnology, Nature Electronics, Nature Energy, Nature Communications, Science, Science Advances, npj Flexible Electronics, Research, Advanced Materials, Journal of the American Chemical Society, etc., with over 200,000 citations (ISI Web of Knowledge) and an H-index of 200. He is also the most cited Researchers in the field of physics, material science, chemistry as well as the 1% most highly cited researchers in the field of materials/chemistry/informatics/physicist in the world (ISI Highly Cited Scientist). His academic excellence is underscored by numerous prestigious awards, including two Second-class Prizes of the National Natural Science Award, the Technological and Scientific Progress Award from the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation, and multiple first-class prizes from the Ministry of Education, Chinese Institute of Electronics, and other national and international bodies. He has also been awarded honorary doctorates by the Russian Academy of Sciences, University of Sheffield, and University of Johannesburg.

He is Editors-in-Chief of npj Flexible Electronics, FlexMat, and Research. He has held over 1000 patents which are granted and publicized in USA, Singapore, and China. He has authored several influential academic books, including Organic Optoelectronics, Bio-optoelectronics, Introduction to Organic Light-Emitting Materials and Devices, etc.

About the Translator

CHENG Yin, is Vice Dean of Queen Mary University of London Engineering School, Northwestern Polytechnical University (QMES), China. Experience of 10 years work in the Office of International Cooperation in Northwestern Polytechnical University broadened her global horizon, deepened her understanding of various educational concepts and systems, and established close relationship with renowned universities around the world. Currently, She is the Vice Dean of QMES which helped her become proficient in the teaching methods, recruitment, student affairs of Sino-foreign Cooperative Education Institutions.

She was awarded "Outstanding Administrator of Sino-foreign cooperative education institutions in Shaanxi Province", "Excellent Individual in Social Practice of College Students in Shaanxi Province", won the first and second Prizes of Teaching Achievement Award of Shaanxi Province. Published more than 20 papers on important journals at home and abroad: A Comparative Study on the Affairs of International Students(CSCD), Strategies to Realize the Education Globalization of Engineering Universities of China, Practice and Exploration of Cultivating Internationalized Innovative Talents in Sino-foreign Cooperative Education Institutions, etc. Participated in International Conference of The international Association for Management of Technology (IAMOT) with an oral presentation and a paper published: "Strategies to Conduct a Student-centered Evaluation System to Enhance the Quality of International Students' Education in China". Hosted The Chinese Academic Translation Project: "Inquiry on Higher Education"and entrusted World Scientific Publishing Company to publish the translated version. Hosted more than 10 research projects at Provincial level: "Research on the Competence of University Counselors in Sino-foreign Cooperative Education Institutions", etc.