Tianjin University, Georgia Tech -- one of the best universities in the world -- and the city of Shenzhen signed an agreement to establish the Georgia Tech Tianjin University Shenzhen Institute on Dec 2.

The institute is intended to cultivate talents with global views, innovative spirits and strong practical abilities able to focus on research of critical academic issues.

The Georgia Tech Tianjin University Shenzhen Institute will cover 162,000 square meters and will be located at Nanshan District, Shenzhen. Plans are to recruit about 3,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from around the world by 2030.

Zhong Denghua (right), president of Tianjin University, and Bud Peterson (left), president of Georgia Tech, sign a cooperation agreement in Shenzhen on Dec 2, 2016. [Photo/Tianjin University]

The institute will offer majors in electrical and computer engineering, computer science, industrial design, environmental engineering and analytics and will develop major research centers focusing on green buildings and sponge cities, signal processing and data analytics, and wearable, printed electronics and advanced telecommunications.

At the signing ceremony, Bud Peterson, president of Georgia Tech, said “It's a perfect platform for Georgia Tech in Asia. The fact that the mayor is an engineer, the chairman of the Party is an engineer, Georgia Tech is an engineering institute, and Tianjin has a very strong engineering program makes it the ideal platform for Georgia Tech in Asia.”

Zhong Denghua, president of Tianjin University, said the establishment of the institute is an important achievement for greater educational collaboration between China and America.

Wu Yihuan, vice mayor of the Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government (right), Tianjin University President Zhong Denghua (middle), and Bud Peterson (left), president of Georgia Tech, discuss the future of the Institute. [Photo/Tianjin University]

“Education is the driving force behind the development of science and technology," said Wu Yihuan, vice-mayor of Shenzhen. "The Georgia Tech Tianjin University Shenzhen Institute will help to solve the problem of supply and demand of high-quality education resources in Shenzhen, and contribute to the development of Shenzhen in becoming an advanced, modern, international city.”

Tianjin University and Georgia Tech launched a Master of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering (MS ECE) program in Shenzhen In August 2014, the first degree program offered in Shenzhen by an American university.

To date, about 120 students have enrolled in the program every year, 70 percent of whom have applied for PhD studies and obtained internship opportunities in the US.

Qi Cheng is a graduate of the MS ECE Program and is now completing a PhD in electronics and computer engineering at the Atlanta campus of Georgia Tech.

He said "Renowned Georgia Tech professors, a small-class system, and high-pressure English tests all helped me adapt to the new learning environment before I came to the United States, and also provided me with a solid background to carry out research with my mentor.”