Development Report in 2006

The whole year of 2006 in Nankai University saw a fruitful development in disciplinary construction, teaching and academic research, talent cultivation, international academic exchange and collaboration, and infrastructural construction.

Achievement in disciplinary construction A working conference on disciplinary construction was convened to lay down for the Eleventh Five-year Plan a general policy of disciplinary construction which features priority projects, optimization of structure and seeking after new development. Correspondent systems were set up, including the managerial system of disciplinary construction on the three levels of school, dean and department, system of building specific foundation and its rectification, managerial system of disciplinary construction information, system of appraisal index of disciplinary construction, system of disciplinary self-evaluation, reporting system disciplinary development, and mechanism of the disciplinary soft environmental construction. To top it all, a consultant system made up of non-collegiate experts was established to perfect the talent work agenda.

With military education being listed among the stations of the Master's Degree, the University became one of universities with the fullest range of disciplines in China. In the third Tianjin's key disciplines evaluation, 48 secondary disciplines in Nankai were included, topping its counterparts in Tianjin. Stations of Doctoral authorization for primary disciplines increased from 12 to 16, the number of stations of Doctoral authorization increased from 100 to 117, and that of stations of Master authorization from 158 to 206. The provincial and ministerial key disciplines increased from 24 to 48, key research bases of humanities appointed by the Ministry of Education grew from 4 to 6, national scientific and technological innovation groups rose from 1 to 2 and the disciplinary innovation and talent introduction bases increased from 1 to 2. In addition, 2 national collegiate experimental teaching model centers and 2 engineering research centers appointed by the Ministry of Education were added.

The University passed the national inspection and appraisal for 211 projects during the Tenth Five-year Plan with high marks and betook itself to undertaking the 211 projects for the Eleventh Five-year Plan. Annals of Combinatorics published by The Center for Combinatorics in Nankai University was selected as source journal in SCIE. The construction project of National Model Software School passed the appraisal. The University worked with Japanese REQUEST Waves Ltd. and Japanese Digital Hollywood Ltd. to establish the College of REQUEST Waves Digital Media and Tianjin REQUEST Waves Digital Media Technology Corporation. This cooperation was listed as a key project in Tianjin software industry development agenda of 2006. The MBA in Nankai was laureated with The Most Influential MBA in China. A large-scale economic website called "Chinese Economic Web" was founded. Apart from all these accomplishments, the University was among the first that had obtained IPMP authentication.

Steady improvement of teaching quality The University was appointed as College English Teaching Reform Model School, and four new national quality courses were added. 2 dissertations were awarded the National Excellent Ph.D Dissertations in 2006 and 6 dissertations won Tianjin Excellent Ph.D Dissertations. Professor Cheng Peng won the prize of the Second National Famous University Tutor, 4 professors were awarded Tianjin Famous University Tutors, and 1 was awarded Tianjin Exemplary Tutor in Virtue and Teaching. In the National Philips Challenge Cup of Chinese Collegiate Venture Contest, one Gold and one Silver went to Nankai University. In Chinese Youth Venture Contest, student Wu Xiaoyan was the Overall Winner and was awarded The Most Potential Youth in China. Ph.D candidate Du Ya won The Third Chinese Juvenile Scientific and Technological Innovation Prize.

The University and Tianjin Municipal Committee of Education co-chaired the fifth and sixth quarterly seminars on "College Students and Modern Economic and Social Development". Experts were convened to undertake self-evaluation on teaching for the coming undergraduate teaching appraisal by the Ministry of Education. Preparatory work of The Tenth Challenge Cup of National Collegiate Extra-curriculum Technological Products Contest was under way and appraisal for the third "Hundred Projects" of undergraduates innovation and research was finished. The University signed an agreement on with TEDA on cooperative talents cultivation. In addition, 28 Ph.D candidates who had failed to graduate in due time were ordered to end their studies without offering Doctoral Degree, an action which first broke the record of zero elimination in China. A regular monitoring and evaluating system for graduate education was set up to oversee the whole process. As well, a rewarding system for research innovation on Ph.D candidates' part and system of rewarding excellent Doctoral dissertation were established.

Breakthrough in scientific research innovation Appropriations of natural sciences research surmounted 200 million RMB, and that of social sciences research surmounted 30 million RMB. Academicians Rao Zihe was awarded Chen Jiageng Life Sciences Prize and Trieste Science Prize. Professor Xu Jingjun won Chinese Young Scientist Prize, Academician Li Zhengming won the National Invention Prize, and Associate Professor Zhao Bin won the Youth Chemistry Prize by Chinese Chemistry Association. Besides, other 13 research products won the Science and Technology Prize by Tianjin Municipality. The fundamental study on crucial problems in large-area, low-priced and long-life solar battery science and technology undertaken by the University and Chinese Academy of Sciences was included in "973 Projects", and 10 programs were included in "863 Projects". Professor Liu Yu was appointed as the chief scientist for a key national scientific research program named "applied research on formation and function of nano-super-molecular assembly". Tianjin International Biomedicine Institute was set up in Binhai new district, and President Rao Zihe took the position of its Dean.

The University won the bidding for four key philosophy and social scientific research programs by the Ministry of Education, ranking the second in China and 26 national social sciences foundation programs, among which three were key programs, ranking the third among Chinese universities. A textbook called Introduction to Fundamental Marxist Theory for Marxism research and construction project by the Central Government was edited by a group of experts, among whom Professor Pang Jinju was the leading expert. Moreover, some research products have been widely put tinto practice, including the "Corporate Governance Evaluation Index" and "Development Index for Chinese Middle and Small Scaled Enterprises". The APEC Institute came up with a research report named "Mutual Work, Mutual Benefit" for the 14th APEC Chinese leaders' unofficial Conference held in Ha noi in Vietnam. The University cooperated with the Administrative Commission of TEDA to set up TEDA Recycling Economic Promotion Center, the first in China and signed an agreement on scientific and technological cooperation with the Environmental Monitoring Center in Liaoning Province to do research on regional atmospheric environment of the Province. The University also undertook the first environmental evaluation on urban overall planning strategy, viz. the environmental evaluation on Wuhan's overall planning strategy and finished the study on Tourism Project in Lijiang, Yunnan Province.

Remarkable achievement in talent construction A total sum of 40 million RMB was appropriated to supply scientific research facilities and platforms for newly introduced talents. Deans of 14 academic schools and academic leaders were for open recruitment at home and abroad. Middle-aged and young teachers were sent abroad for further study, including 20 times on the State Fund for Study Abroad and 30 times on the University's Exchange Programs.
The year of 2006 saw in Nankai University one more academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 3 more chair professors on the Yangtze River Scholarship, 6 more lecture professors, 2 more winners of the National Outstanding Youth Foundation, 3 more candidates for the New Century Hundred-thousand Talents and 2 more chair professors on the School. More than 30 high-leveled talents were brought in, including 20 overseas returning scholars. More than 100 excellent graduating doctors were hired to the effect that the teachers with Doctor's Degree stood for 58% of the whole faculty of the School and teachers less than 45 years old occupied 68%.

Effort towards internationalization 5 agreements on academic cooperation were signed between the University and its overseas counterparts and 2 projects of cooperatively running school was reported. The University worked with Japanese REQUEST Waves Ltd. to establish School of Nankai-REQUEST Waves Digital Media and was madding preparations for setting up School of Hotel Management in TEDA with University of South Carolina and Center of Social Policy Research with Hong Kong Chinese University. Under the cooperative effort between Nankai and Aichi University of Japan,the School of Confucius Study was built up. Moreover, 23 international seminars were convened and the 70th Council Conference of the International University Union was sponsored by Nankai University.

The University hosted 1690 international students on long term, and 459 ones on short term, the two of which numbered up to 2149.

The University received 93 international delegation, totaling 834 person-times. Cordial reception was also given to 16 delegations from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, totaling 162 person-times. More than 20 groups of presidents from overseas universities visited Nankai successively, including University of Hawaii, University of Minnesota, University of Simon Frazer, University of South Carolina, Hanan University (Korea), University of Suwon (Korea), Dongguk University (Korea), Sogang University (Korea), Aichi University (Japan), Soka University (Japan), University of Auckland (New Zealand), National Cheng Kung University (Taiwan), Nan Kai Institute of Technology (Taiwan), and Mingdao University (Taiwan). 58 person-times of foreign experts, and visiting scholars on long term and about 160 foreign experts on short term were invited. 11 guest professors, guest researchers and chancellor consultants were employed.

Improvement in educational conditions The year of 2006 saw a floorage of 50,000ŠO and the all-around teaching building and student union center were put into use. The central gym project was also in the phrase of interior decoration and internet fixing. The major body of biological experimental station was finished and construction of number 9 student apartment building was under way. 6 projects of landscape engineering came to the end, which increased 10,400ŠOgreen areas. More than 20,000ŠO teaching and administrative offices were repaired and the design for the main campus was revised.