Beihang News, May 12 (Correspondent & Author Zhang Li; Photographer Song Chao) On the morning of May 12, China Scholarship Council and Le Groupe des Ecoles Centrales held the Tenth Anniversary of the Commencement of Doctoral Scholarship Program and the agreement renewal event at the meeting center of the University’s new main building. Deputy Secretary-General of China Scholarship Council Zhang Ning, Vice President of École Centrale de Lyon Jean-Pierre Bertoglio, Director of CNRS China Representative Office Antoine Mynard, Vice President of Beihang University Huang Haijun, and representatives from brother universities including Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing Language and Culture University, and Xidian University were present at the meeting.
Deputy Secretary-General of China Scholarship Council Zhang Ning comprehensively reviewed the cooperation process and the remarkable achievement obtained by both sides, and extended sincere gratitude and kind wishes to people from all walks of life dedicating to the Sino-French cultural and educational exchange and cooperation in the long term.
Vice President Huang Haijun addressed that Beihang is the largest beneficiary and the biggest supporter of the program, one of the most outstanding and fruitful exchange and cooperation programs between China and France. Since 2006, Beihang appointed 140 doctoral students through the program, representing 40% of the total appointed people.
Vice President of École Centrale de Lyon Jean-Pierre Bertoglio and Director of CNRS China Representative Office Antoine Mynard recognized respectively that many outstanding young scientific and technological talents from China and France have been fostered, and Sino-French scientific research cooperation has obtained fruitful achievement driven and promoted by the program. Further promotion and development of the program will continue to be strongly supported.
Associate Professor of Sino-French Engineer School Fang Lefu, among the first batch of students who received scholarship in the 2006 program and returned China, along with two students of Sino-French Engineer School who are currently pursuing doctoral degree in France under the scholarship, shared their experience of studying in France and working in China respectively.
Under the witness of all guests present at the meeting, China Scholarship Council and five universities of Le Groupe des Ecoles Centrales renewed the cooperative scholarship program agreement from 2017 to 2022. The scholarship agreement renewed included cooperation of master, doctoral and post-doctoral degrees, with up to 110 appointed students annually, and 1,200 EUR per person per month in sponsorship.
It is reported that China Scholarship Council and five universities of Le Groupe des Ecoles Centrales signed the first cooperation agreement on Sept. 12th, 2005, and the cooperation commenced since then. Both sides renewed the cooperation agreement in 2012 and 2014 respectively. From 2006 to 2016, 11 classes and 348 outstanding Chinese young scholars from over 60 Chinese universities and scientific and research institutions pursued doctoral degree in France through the program, ranked second in the number of people appointed among French programs. Statistics from China’s national information platform of studying abroad shows that out of the 243 appointed students studying abroad since 2009, 103 are still pursuing degrees, and 116 students successfully graduated and returned to China, constituting 83% of the total appointed people.
In 2016, China Scholarship Council sponsored 111,020 students in total from domestic and abroad to study overseas, among which state government-sponsored students amounted to 62,005 in 95 countries globally, and 3,437 of them were in France. Chinese Government Scholarship sponsored 49,020 students from 183 countries and regions globally to study in China, among which 569 were from France.
