Due to the impact of the COVID 19 epidemic and the international travel restriction, many exchange programs between SMU and overseas partner universities had to be suspended for the time being. To facilitate a continuation of the cooperation between SMU and our overseas partners, International Education College (IEC) , with the joint efforts from the College of Transport & Communications and the Merchant Marine College, designed and offered a series of online lectures for international students from partner universities to participate on a volunteer basis.
The 18 lectures were produced by well-known professors from the College of Transport & Communications and the Merchant Marine College, covering the latest industry developments and professional knowledge in shipping management, navigation technology, marine engineering, etc.. The partner universities welcomed the program and regarded it as a very meaningful gesture under the epidemic. As claimed by international students, although it’s a regret that they were not able to come to China to study, they could still see the excellence of Chinese teachers online. A good number of international students took part in this project, and the Pakistan Shipping Institute alone organized nearly 50 students to participate.
More online exchange programs would be launched jointly by IEC and our overseas partners this year. It is hoped that an increasing number of international students can join the online programs to better understand the development of China's shipping industry.
