Secretary of the CPC BIT Committee, Academician Zhang Jun

President of BIT, Academician Long Teng 

As the new year is coming, we extend our sincere greetings and best wishes to all the students, faculty, staff members, retirees, and alumni from home and abroad, as well as to people from various sectors of society who have long cared about and supported the development of the Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT)!

The year 2023 marked the commencement of comprehensively implementing the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, with solid progress being made in the new journey toward building a modern socialist country in all respects, and the grand blueprint of Chinese-style modernization being turned step by step into a beautiful reality. 

Throughout the year, the university had fully implemented the Party's educational policies, adhered to the socialist orientation of education, and focused on the fundamental task of fostering virtue and nurturing talents. Moreover, the university had made a remarkable progress in various indicators, and the teachers and students had made joint efforts in injecting new momentum into the construction of a world-class university!

Today's BIT, adhering to the principle of "putting education first," has pioneered a new phase in improving the quality of talent cultivation.

The university's long-term commitment to talent cultivation was evident with the convening of a high-standard conference on talent cultivation, and the release of the "White Paper on Deepening the Reform of Talent Cultivation."

It also established a new pattern of ideological and political education, constructed a high-level talent cultivation system, and focused on cultivating leaders with the Yan'an spirit.

The university achieved the integration of Bachelor's and Master's programs, established new benchmarks for cultivating outstanding engineering talents, and created the Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH) Medical Class and the Li Zexiang Innovation and Entrepreneurship Class. 

It won three first prizes and 10 second prizes at the National Teaching Achievement Award and was approved to establish a national artificial intelligence industry-education integration innovation platform. 

The 13th "Challenge Cup" Chinese University Student Entrepreneurship Competition was successfully held at the BIT, and the BIT ranked first in terms of the total number of gold awards and overall points, winning the highest honor of the "Challenge Cup." 

The university won the national championship in the China Post-graduate Mathematical Contest in Modeling for the first time, and its undergraduate education and teaching assessments were successfully completed with a high standard. The quality of undergraduate students ranked among the top 10 in the "Double First-Class" universities, and the competitiveness of graduates' employment was in the top tier nationwide.

Today's BIT, adhering to its "original aspiration of serving the country," has embarked on a new journey of scientific and technological innovation. 

Serving the major strategic needs of the country, the university has anchored itself at the forefront of science and technology in the world. 

The university has been approved for 27 major projects under the national key research and development plan. 

Since the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), the total number of projects led by the BIT rank top among all the universities affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Its original innovation capability has also been improved significantly, with the approval of 416 projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation. The BIT also obtained approval for the establishment of one basic science center, five outstanding young  talent projects, and 10 excellent young talent projects. 

The university was approved for two innovative groups, reaching a historic high, and a total of 31 faculty members and students were selected as globally highly cited scientists. The innovation platform system was further improved, leading to the approval of three national-level science and technology innovation platforms and participation in six national-level science and technology innovation platforms. Breakthroughs were also achieved in the research of humanity and social sciences, with the approval of 34 projects from the National Social Science Fund, including six major projects. Scientific research achievements added new laurels, reaching a historic high in the number of high-level provincial and ministerial awards from academic societies.

Today's BIT, adhering to the principle of "cultivating and attracting talents simultaneously," has demonstrated a new era of responsibility for the faculty team. Adhering to the principle of the Party on the management of talents, the university has systematically promoted its "strengthening the university through talents" strategy. The university consistently upholds moral integrity as the primary standard, and one team was selected as part of the third batch of "Huang Danian-style Teacher Teams among National Universities". 

The BIT has improved its talent development mechanism, implementing a recruitment system for teaching staff of "pre-appointment, tenured, and special positions" that is unique to the university and aligned with international conventions. Two new members were elected to the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and for three consecutive years, the national-level increment of talents exceeded 100, with more than half being self-cultivated. The focus of talent work gradually shifted from "attraction-oriented" to "cultivation-oriented", and the reform of the teacher team management mechanism was deepened, seeing the proportion of new-system teachers reach 50%. The "doubling plan" for postdoctoral researchers was also promoted, with the annual postdoctor recruitment exceeding 300 for the first time and resulting in the addition of six new postdoctoral mobile work stations.

Today's BIT has shaped a new advantage in the development of disciplinary construction. The optimization of the layout of disciplines and specialties has achieved significant results in cross-disciplinary collaboration. The university has built 33 doctoral programs and 15 professional degree categories for first-level disciplines at a high level. Emerging interdisciplinary subjects, such as network space security and integrated circuit science and engineering, have entered the top echelon nationally, and the improvement of the connotations of disciplines has upgraded in quality. Six disciplines have entered the top 3% of the best disciplines in China, ranking among the top 10 nationwide in terms of quantity. Additionally, 18 disciplines have entered the top 12%. 

The international influence of disciplines has comprehensively improved, with 11 disciplines entering the top 1% in ESI and four disciplines entering the top 1‰ in ESI. The university saw its world university ranking elevated by 99 places over the previous year, with its Times Higher Education (THE) ranking the 129th globally, an elevation of 366 places over the past five years.

Today's BIT, through deepening "convergence and mutual assistance," has constructed a new map of open education to enhance capabilities. The integration and win-win cooperation among the university, local communities, and enterprises have added new dimensions to the cooperative network. The university has deepened its comprehensive strategic cooperation with nearly 30 high-level partner institutions, including provincial governments of Hebei and Henan, as well as the Civil Aviation Administration of China and the CITIC Group. 

The establishment of the Zhengzhou Research Institute has accelerated, and the construction of the Huailai Research and Experiment Base is progressing comprehensively. The building of Zhuhai campus is also stepping up. High-quality international education is being promoted, and the quality of higher education for international students has been rated A+ nationally, with approval having been granted to establish Sino-American high-end international curriculum programs. The BIT is deepening cooperation with the United Nations, and is the only domestic university to host a thematic forum during the UN Digital Economy Week (eweek).

Today's BIT, adhering to the principle of "teachers and students as the priority," has achieved a new leap in university governance. Deepening the six-level linkage system, the university has systematically improved its internal governance efficiency. It has carried out 'Smart BIT' construction, enhancing the efficiency of information-based governance. Steadily advancing the mid-term evaluation of the "14th Five-Year Plan" period (2021-25) for development, the university has scientifically optimized its organizational structures and budgetary allocations, and has comprehensively constructed a new pattern of cultural development characterized by "five interconnected cores, five integrated halls, and five harmonized elements". 

The new landmark Culture and Art Center has been put into use, and an exhibition hall of "People's Military Industry Led by the Party" has been established. Campus infrastructure has been optimized, with the construction of Liangxiang campus, which covers an area of nearly 100,000 square meters, having been commenced. The "Beautification and Illumination Culture" plan has been upgraded, completing the greening transformation of an area of 36,000 square meters across both campuses, creating a landscape illumination project. Logistics reform has also been deepened, improving convenience for both teachers and students.

In 2023, by riding high the tide of the times, we marched forward with determination. The hardships on the journey, the sweat and the struggle had all transformed into the driving force for progress, inspiring the next generation of the BIT people to make new contributions. Hereby, we express our heartfelt gratitude and pay our high respect to every member of the BIT community! Teachers, students, and alumni, it is the difficulty that makes greatness apparent, and it is the challenges that add luster. In the coming year, we hope that all BIT members will anchor their goals, strengthen strategic confidence, unite in determination, bravely shoulder their responsibilities, and create new achievements in the new journey of building a modern socialist country. 

We wish everyone a happy New Year and a prosperous family! Wish our motherland more prosperous and strong!

Dec 31, 2023