Foreign professors bring German experience to China's technology hub

by Xinhua writers Liang Xizhi, Wang Pan and Yin Peng

SHENZHEN, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- Franz Raps usually encourages his freshman students at Shenzhen Technology University (SZTU) to do things by themselves, such as changing light bulbs, as he believes "the world belongs to those who are not afraid to get their hands dirty."

It is one of Raps' "German ideas" that he has brought to his Chinese students in China's high-tech hub of Shenzhen, Guangdong Province.

Home to manufacturing and Internet technology giants such as Huawei, Tencent, and BYD, the city of Shenzhen posted a GDP of more than 3 trillion yuan (about 413.48 billion U.S. dollars) last year, ranking third among Chinese cities.

In 2018, Raps was hired as the first dean of the College of Urban Transportation and Logistics at SZTU, becoming the first foreign dean of the university. In 2017, he visited SZTU as dean of the College of Electrical Engineering at the Augsburg University of Applied Sciences in Germany.

Holger Haldenwang, fellow German and former executive vice president of the Regensburg University of Applied Sciences, is the founding dean and chair professor of the School of Business.

Officially established in 2018, SZTU focuses on the applied sciences and technology, and draws experience from overseas technology universities. Its establishment has demonstrated China's determination to cultivate high-caliber talent in this field.

"Applied science and technology universities in Germany are successful, cultivating many engineers, designers and actuaries," said SZTU President Ruan Shuangchen.

"The university should first become an international university, and then a high-level university of applied sciences. This is our key philosophy," Ruan said.

Among the 14 colleges at SZTU, seven deans are foreigners. Meanwhile, SZTU has signed cooperation agreements with more than 20 German universities and institutions.

SZTU's racing car studio is an example of how the Chinese institution has learned from others. The multidisciplinary workshop facilitates students majoring in areas such as design, manufacturing and business.

"Designing and assembling racing cars is very popular in German technical universities. If students have the ability to design and assemble a racing car and make it actually run, I believe that students will not worry about finding a job," Raps said.