On November 26, 2015, “The University of Sydney Day” was held at the Yingjie Exchange Center, Peking University (PKU). Michael Spence, President of the University of Sydney, along with other officials were present and were received by Lin Jianhua, President of Peking University; PKU Vice Presidents Wang Jie and Li Yansong also received the delegation.
The event began with an introduction of the delegation and The University of Sydney. Shortly afterwards, Mr. Lin Jianhua gave a welcoming speech, in which he mentioned the high academic reputation of the University of Sydney many subjects, including natural sciences and social sciences. He also mentioned the long history of cooperation between PKU and the University of Sydney, which could be dated back to the 1980s. This long term cooperation in various areas between the two universities has greatly promoted higher education and also helped develop global perspectives and cross-culture communication skills of students.
Following President Lin, President Spence highlighted that “the purpose of higher education is to provide outstanding education to the students who are the future leaders of the country.” He also emphasized on the need for continued research in universities. “The value of the university lies in the combination of research and teaching, which in this case, teachers and students are all scholars”, said Mr. Spence.
After he finished his remarks, there was a Q&A session. Many students raised questions to President Spence, among which, the the topic that many students were interested in was what kind of student the University of Sydney is looking for. In response, President Spence told the audience the common characteristics possessed by top students: good at listening and good at questioning things, even things that have been widely accepted as truth. In regard to this, he encouraged students to think more, and think critically.
Written by: Tan Yiqian
Edited by: Liu Xiya
