On the afternoon of March 16, the Tsinghua-University of Manchester Joint PhD Programme Exchange Meeting was held in Conference Room 102, Building 3-West, Department of Electrical Engineering, Tsinghua University. Attendees included Professor Zhongdong Wang and Professor Xiaojun Zeng from the University of Manchester; Sun Fu, Director of the Training Office of the Graduate School of Tsinghua University; Kang Chongqing, Dean of the Department of Electrical Engineering; Li Di, Dean of the Department of Astronomy; and over twenty faculty members from the Departments of Electrical Engineering, Astronomy, Chemistry, Physics, and the Shenzhen International Graduate School.

Professor Zhongdong Wang from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the University of Manchester, who also serves as Director of the Manchester-Tsinghua Joint PhD Programme, provided a comprehensive overview of the Joint PhD Programme, covering its establishment background, collaboration history, and enrolment progress.

Professor Zhongdong Wang presents the Tsinghua-Manchester Joint PhD Programme

Wang stated that the programme was launched in 2019 and has completed its first phase of collaboration. It has now entered a new implementation phase (2025–2030), with an expanded participation from both universities’ departments, covering multiple disciplines including electrical engineering, astronomy, chemistry, and physics. The programme adopts “1+2+1” and “2+2” models for joint doctoral training, aiming to cultivate high-level innovative talents with global vision and research insight, while continuously advancing collaboration between the two universities in addressing global development challenges. Regarding programme implementation, joint PhD students receive the same funding support as local students during their stay at the University of Manchester. Research directions strictly follow the requirements of both universities’ relevant departments, with a focus on areas such as sustainable development and clean energy. Enrolment and supervision employ a mechanism of joint supervision by both supervisors, multiple rounds of selection, and dual-university review. Continuous improvements are being made in course study, qualification examinations, and thesis defence processes. Issues related to student status articulation during training have also been clarified, with clear implementation pathways defined for different training models.

During the discussion session, attending faculty engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as project selection, supervisor collaboration, admission applications, training articulation, and course development, and offered constructive suggestions for further optimizing programme implementation.

Discussion session among attendees

Professor Zhongdong Wang and Director Sun Fu concluded the meeting by stating that they would continue to promote the optimization of the programme implementation process and the concrete implementation of various measures, further enhancing the level of collaboration between the two universities in the joint cultivation of high-quality innovative talents.

The successful holding of this in-person exchange meeting provides strong support for the further advancement of the Tsinghua-Manchester Joint PhD Programme, and lays a more solid foundation for continued collaboration between the two institutions in education and research.

Group photo of attendees