23 October 2014
The University of South Australia will launch its China Alumni Association in Beijing this week under the umbrella of that nation’s highly esteemed Western Returned Scholars Association (WRSA).
Announcing the new alumni network, UniSA Vice Chancellor and President, Professor David Lloyd, says the University will be the first in the Southern Hemisphere to have an alumni branch within the WRSA which celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2013.
“It is great honour for us to be able to work with such a prestigious Association, representing some of China’s most achieved global graduates,” Prof Lloyd says.
“The University of South Australia has played a significant role in the education journey for more than 10,000 scholars from China in the past 12 years and has established strong collaborative links with Chinese universities which we regard as important long-term relationships, including with Tianjin University, Shandong University and Beijing Normal University."
He says Chinese students have for many years engaged in a wide range of educational opportunities at UniSA from Bachelor degree programs engineering, education, health, business and sciences right through to MBA and PhD qualifications, and these now make up a vibrant alumni network across China.
“UniSA has continued to build its international reputation as an energetic, enterprising young institution today ranked in the top 50 universities under 50 years old worldwide,” Prof Lloyd says.
“But it is appropriate when considering this new network, to remember that the important gains for students studying with us are not only about new skills and expertise but also about the enduring understanding and friendship formed between China and Australia.”
The new UniSA China Alumni Association will be headed up by inaugural President Mr Qiao Luqiang who graduated from the University with a Graduate Diploma in Arts Management and an MBA.
Now the Deputy Director of Executive Coordination Office at China’s National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing, Mr Qiao continues to make extensive contributions to cultural exchanges between Australia and China.
The launch of the new alumni association will be held at Capital M in the heart of Beijing.
More than 50 alumni are expected to attend the event and they will be welcomed by UniSA staff, including Deputy Vice Chancellor and Vice President Nigel Relph and Pro Vice Chancellor and Vice President (Business & Law) Prof Marie Wilson and UniSA Council member Miriam Silva.
Media contact: Michèle Nardelli office: +61 8 8302 0966 mobile: 0418 823 673 email: Michele.nardelli@unisa.edu.au
