3/7/2011
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A number of new agreements between CEE at Illinois and overseas universities will increase the department’s global engagement, facilitating student exchange and collaborations in research and education.
Agreements have been signed in the past year with Dalian University of Technology, Tongji University, Tsinghua University and Hong Kong University in China; Abu Dhabi University in the United Arab Emirates; and Istanbul Technical University in Turkey. The department also initiated contact between Illinois and University College London, which is now a fully active participant within the College of Engineering International Programs.
The new agreements will allow international students to spend their senior years at Illinois, obtain bachelor of science degrees from their home institutions, and continue their education to earn master of science degrees from CEE at Illinois.
The objectives of forging strong international ties include attracting the world’s brightest students to graduate school at Illinois and promoting institution-to-institution collaborations that foster faculty and student exchange and global engagement in teaching and research.
The CEE department has also assumed a leadership role in developing the College of Engineering Global Academy to enhance research collaboration in important regions around the world. CEE Professor and Head Amr S. Elnashai is Director of the College’s Council on Global Engineering Initiatives, which established the Engineering Global Academy. In April, Elnashai will travel to India with fellow College of Engineering professors Robin Rutenbar, Head of Computer Science; and Andreas Cangellaris, Head of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The three will visit universities, companies and government agencies in Mumbai and Bangalore, with the hope of initiating similar agreements. The group will follow-up on agreements signed with government agencies by Chancellor Easter and Dean of Engineering Adesida.
Photo: Representatives of the University of Illinois and Dalian University sign a collaboration agreement in summer 2010. Seated: Amr Elnashai, Head, CEE at Illinois; Jinping Ou, President, Dalian University of Technology; Robert Easter, Vice President and Chancellor (Interim), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Wolfgang Schlor, Interim Associate Provost for International Affairs, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Standing: representatives of Dalian's Engineering faculty and international office, with representatives of Illinois' College of Engineering and International Programs and Studies. Fourth from the left among those standing is CEE Professor Bill Spencer.