Birmingham undergraduates benefit from one-year internships working for National Innovation Center par Excellence (NICE) institutes and associated companies.
NICE President Professor Qing Liu and University of Birmingham Vice Chancellor & Principal Professor Adam Tickell sign the internship agreement.
The University of Birmingham, NICE, and Jiangsu Industry Technology Research Institute (JITRI) are launching a programme to help improve students’ career prospects after graduating.
Undergraduates at Birmingham will benefit from a range of one-year internships working for NICE’s component institutes and associated companies in China.
The internships will be available to all students undertaking the Year in Industry placement on University of Birmingham undergraduate programmes in engineering, bioscience, computer science, and environmental engineering.
University of Birmingham Vice Chancellor & Principal Professor Adam Tickell and NICE President Professor Qing Liu launched the programme at a special ceremony in Shanghai.
The internship programme launch took place as part of the 2025 International Conference on Engineering Education, which is co-organised by the University of Birmingham, NICE, and JITRI and themed as ‘Integration · Transformation · Future Education’.
Our partnership with JITRI is unique for us in China. I’m delighted that our institutions have worked together to create this significant milestone in our drive to enhance the employability of University of Birmingham graduates.
After delivering a keynote speech at the Conference and signing the internship agreement, Professor Tickell commented: “Our partnership with JITRI is unique for us in China. I’m delighted that our institutions have worked together to create this significant milestone in our drive to enhance the employability of University of Birmingham graduates.
“We are committed to helping all our undergraduates, particularly our international students, make the most of opportunities to gain valuable experience that gives them a competitive advantage in the job market as they prepare to graduate and begin their careers."
Professor Qing Liu commented: “This partnership with the University of Birmingham provides a unique platform for students to gain valuable job opportunities and industry experience within NICE’s ecosystem. It strengthens their readiness for global careers while fostering talents capable of driving progress in key technological fields."
This partnership with the University of Birmingham provides a unique platform for students to gain valuable job opportunities and industry experience within NICE’s ecosystem. It strengthens their readiness for global careers while fostering talents capable of driving progress in key technological fields.
The internship programme builds on a decade of collaboration between the institutions -initiated in 2015 by Professor Zhibing Zhang, Co-Director of the University of Birmingham’s China Institute.
The partnership has already delivered over £2.7 million in joint research funding and supported six major projects in areas such as nanoparticle technology, biomedicine, recycling solutions, and low-carbon clean energy.
NICE, JITRI and the University of Birmingham have joined forces to organise and host today’s conference as education, science and technology, and talent development are key pillars in China's modernisation.
Integrated development across education, research, and talent cultivation will be essential in driving progress. The conference brings together high-profile representatives from international organisations, leading universities, research institutions, and renowned enterprises to promote global collaboration in engineering education.
The forum focussed on the following themes:
For more information, please contact the University of Birmingham press office or call +44 (0) 121 414 2772.
The University of Birmingham is ranked amongst the world’s top 100 institutions, its work brings people from across the world to Birmingham, including researchers and teachers and more than 8,000 international students from over 150 countries.
JITRI, a semi-government organisation backed by the Jiangsu Provincial Government, plays a pivotal role in translating research into industrial applications. Its flexible engagement model with foreign institutions has made it the University of Birmingham’s most prominent partner in China, and a vital source of research funding. JITRI has 85 specialty research institutes and over 13,000 research staff, with seven industrial technology innovation centres in the fields of nanotechnology, medical equipment, intelligent equipment, lasers and optoelectronics, telecommunications and networks, environmental-protection equipment, and the ‘Internet of Things’.
Key projects delivered by the JITRI/Birmingham partnership include:
Professor of Chemical Engineering
Staff profile for Professor Zhibing Zhang from the School of Chemical Engineering at the University of Birmingham.
