Recently, the Ministry of Education of China (MOE) approved the CQMU–UoL Joint Institute, which is jointly submitted by Chongqing Medical University (CQMU) and the University of Leicester (UoL). This Joint Educational Institute (JEI) is the sole Sino-foreign cooperative institute in Central and Western China with a clinical medicine major.
The JEI is one of the colleges under CQMU and has no independent legal person status. It offers four programmes: three undergraduate programmes in Clinical Medicine / Clinical Sciences BSc, Psychiatry/Psychology BSc, Rehabilitation/physiotherapy BSc, and a master's programme in Oncology/ Cancer Cell and Molecular Biology MSc.
The undergraduate programme is incorporated into the national enrollment plan for Chinese institutions of higher learning. Applicants must participate in the Chinese unified national entrance examination and comply with the national unified enrollment policy. Those who successfully complete the program can obtain an undergraduate degree certificate from both CQMU and UoL.
The master’s programme is incorporated into CQMU's annual master's enrollment plan. Applicants must take the Chinese national master's entrance examination and adhere to the Chinese national unified enrollment policy. Those who complete the programme can obtain a master's degree certificate from CQMU and UoL.
In 2019, CQMU and UoL held the signing and launching ceremony of their joint educational programme,
which aims to build a high-level international medical education platform
In 2023, the President and Vice Chancellor of UoL and his delegation visited CQMU,
and attended the 2023 Opening Ceremony of the CQMU-UoL Joint Education Programme.
Currently, CQMU and UoL jointly hold educational programme in clinical medicine which was approved by the MOE in 2018 and officially launched in 2019. This programme is the sole Sino-foreign cooperative programme in clinical medicine in Western China and began enrolling students in 2020. It has enrolled four sessions, with 448 students from 15 provinces and municipalities in China.
After four years of development, the programme established an internationalised high-level medical talent training model. By fostering student international exchanges, introducing foreign professional textbooks, initiating cross-border projects, and implementing diverse courses & international conferences, it has formed a global, modern and forward-looking systems of management, teaching, evaluation and student support, which could be shared for other institutes. As a significant means of openness for CQMU, it will expedite medical education reform and offer valuable insights for internationalising medical education in China, particularly for establishing an international platform for inland medical education.
The educational quality of this programme has been recognised both domestically and internationally. In April 2023, the clinical medicine programme has been accredited by the MOE of China, and earned its status as a national top-tier undergraduate programme. And it also has been awarded Recognition Status by the World Federation of Medical Education (WFME). In May 2023, the programme successfully underwent an international quality review led by UoL and involving third-party universities from the UK, aligning with global higher education standards. In March 2024, a delegation from CQMU visited UoL to conduct a field review of the education and teaching situation of the programme, and the review results were good. The programme’s student satisfaction is high, and its social acceptance and recognition are increasing yearly.
Based on the successful operation of the collaborative programme, CQMU and UoL have expanded collaborative programmes and degrees. In December 2021, CQMU and UoL initiated the JEI application process. In October 2022, the application for JEI was submitted to the MOE. In February 2023, the application underwent a comprehensive evaluation by experts from the MOE. In May 2024, the JEI was officially approved by the MOE.
The friendship between Chongqing and Leicester City goes back a long way. In October 1993, Chongqing and Leicester forged a sister-city relationship. Establishing the JEI has received strong support from both Chinese and British governments. In July 2022, H.E. Caroline Wilson, British ambassador to China, visited CQMU with her best wishes for the Joint Educational Institute of CQMU and UoL. In December 2023, a Chongqing Government delegation visited Leicester and talked with UoL. The Foreign Affairs Office of Chongqing Municipal People's Government extended its heartfelt appreciation to UoL, noting that the collaborative initiative between CQMU and UoL has become a pivotal cultural and human tie between Chongqing and Leicester.
