On Wednesday 21 February 2018, five PhD students from the Birmingham Centre for Railway Research and Education (BCRRE) spent the evening celebrating Chinese New Year with British Prime Minister, Theresa May, at 10 Downing Street.
Tingyu Xin, Qianyu Chen, Yuemiao Wang, Xinnan Lyv, and Shuxia Lu joined other Chinese students in the UK involved in higher education and language exchanges at a reception to mark the beginning of the Year of the Dog.
Commenting on her experience of the evening, Tigyu Xin, currently undertaking a PhD in Railway Integration at BCRRE, said:
“It is a great experience to visit 10 Downing Street and talk with the Chinese and British people who make an enormous contribution to a ‘Golden Era’ for UK-China relations. At the end of the reception, the Prime Minister, Theresa May, gave a speech and ended it by saying 'Happy New Year' in Chinese which really touches and inspires me. I can see the ties between the UK and China are deepening. I am really glad I chose the UK to study in.”
The university was approached by the Prime Minister’s Office and asked to nominate student ambassadors to attend the reception. Jenny Illingsworth, BCRRE’s Manager, commented: "We are very honoured that students from BCRRE have been recognised. All of our students are making big contributions to the University’s research and helping to revolutionise rail."
The reception came during a busy week for the BCRRE team. On Tuesday (20 February), BCRRE representatives joined the launch of the UK Rail Research and Innovation Network (UKRRIN) where the University of Birmingham will become lead partner and home to the Centre of Excellence in Digital Systems. On the day after PhD students celebrated Chinese New Year at Downing Street; the BCRRE leadership team and five more students attended Buckingham Palace to receive their Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education for their work on improving railway safety worldwide.
Please follow the link below to find out more about BCRRE’s research and the range of undergraduate and postgraduate opportunities the centre offers: