The University of Birmingham has received a top education award from Chinese online media giant Tencent – recognising the institution’s continuing popularity in China among students and their families.
Representatives from the University accepted the ‘2018 Tencent Award for Favoured UK University among Chinese families’ at the prestigious Tencent Annual Award Ceremony, in Beijing.
Birmingham was selected for the award following an online survey carried out by Tencent, which runs major social and communication platforms in China such as QQ.com, WeChat, Tencent News, Tencent Net, Tencent Games and Tencent Videos.
Vivien Zhang and Mingya Zong, from the University of Birmingham’s China Office, in Guangzhou, collected the award which was included in the range of accolades for the first time this year.
Professor Jon Frampton, Director of the University of Birmingham’s China Institute said: “The University of Birmingham has a long history of educating students from China and I am delighted that our popularity among Chinese students and their families has been recognised with this prestigious award.
“We have been challenging and developing great minds at Birmingham for more than a century, welcoming people from around the globe to study on our beautiful campus. Chinese students form an integral part of our education and research community.”
The University of Birmingham recently became the first elite UK Russell Group University to announce that it will accept the ‘Gaokao’ exam for high-flying Chinese students wishing to join its undergraduate courses in 2019.
High school students who complete the ‘National Higher Education Entrance Examination’, or Gaokao, with top grades will be able to apply for direct entry onto Birmingham degree programmes without first completing a Foundation year.
Gaokao is usually taken by students in their last year of senior high school and, every year, each province in China sets the grades required to gain admission to its universities.
The University of Birmingham – Jinan University Joint Institute, which opened in September 2017, already accepts Gaokao for entry to its innovative dual degree mathematics courses.
- 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 6,500 international students from over 150 countries.
- It is ranked 7th in the UK for Graduate Employability (Destination of Leavers from Higher Education survey 2014/15) and was named University of the Year for Graduate Employment 2015/16 by The Times and Sunday Times.
- The history of collaboration between China and the University of Birmingham dates back almost to the foundation of the University in 1901. The University’s China Institute was created in 2012 to reflect Birmingham’s extensive academic activities its colleagues undertake in China.