CityU holds Ceremony for the Conferment of Honorary Degree and Congregation 2023/2024 with 2,500 graduates

The City University of Macau (CityU) held the Ceremony for the Conferment of Honorary Degree and the Congregation 2023/2024 at the Tap Seac Multisport Pavilion today (June 2). The ceremony conferred honorary doctorates upon Zheng Weimin, Quanshui Zheng, and Mark Jiapeng Wang, in recognition of their outstanding achievements in their respective fields and significant contributions to social development and higher education. This year, nearly 2,500 graduation certificates were awarded, including 200+ Ph.D. and doctoral students, 1,200+ master’s students, and about a thousand bachelor’s students. This ceremony lasted for one day. After the main ceremony concluded, the master’s and bachelor’s degree conferment session of each faculty were conducted.

The officiating ceremony was graced by honorable guests, including Ao Ieong U, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of MSAR Government; Li Yongxian, deputy director of the Department of Education and Youth Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the MSAR; Lin Ruhai, director of the Consular Affairs Department of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the MSAR; Lao Ngai Leong, chairman of the University Foundation Trust Committee; and the honorary doctorate recipients, including academician of Chinese Academy of Engineering Zheng Weimin, academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences Quanshui Zheng, founder and chairman of the board of the United World Colleges Changshu China and the China World Academy Mark Jiapeng Wang; as well as Chan Meng Kam, chancellor and chairman of the Council of City University of Macau; Kong Fanqing, vice chairwoman of the Council of City University of Macau; and Prof. Jun Liu, rector of CityU. The ceremony was attended by members of the University Council, University Foundation, consul-generals, legislative members, officials, representatives from high schools and higher education institutions, scholarship donors, CityU leaders, distinguished guests, and the families and friends of the graduates. The event was live-streamed online, garnering 200,000 views.

In her speech, Secretary Ao Ieong stated that the SAR government focuses on the development positioning of “one center, one platform, one base” and implements the “1+4” development plan for appropriate economic diversification. She highlighted the government’s commitment to optimizing structures of the key industries and fostering a robust talent pool through a multi-pronged approach of “talent cultivation, talent return, and talent introduction,” aiming to ensure a solid human resource foundation for the development of key industries and leverage Macao’s role in key national development initiatives such as the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Greater Bay Area) and the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin (Cooperation Zone). She also noted that the preferential policies launched by the central government this year provide more favorable conditions for the development of Macao’s key industries, facilitating the city’s integration into the national development. Secretary Ao Ieong stated that the government actively aligns its initiatives with the national strategy of building a leading country in education, science and technology, and with talented individuals, promoting the optimization of governance and curriculum effectiveness in local higher education institutions to enhance their international and regional competitiveness and facilitate Macao’s greater integration into national development.

Rector Jun Liu congratulated the graduates on behalf of the University and expressed his gratitude and respect to the parents and staff. In his speech, Rector Liu emphasized CityU’s commitment to aligning with the national strategy of “building a leading country in education,” striving to create an educational hub that embodies “Macao Characteristics, China Soul, Global Vision.” He mentioned CityU’s dedication to driving sci-tech innovation for high-quality development in the context of digital education and internationalization, pursuing scientific excellence in the cultivation of new quality productive forces, serving the “1+4” appropriate diversification of Macao’s economy, the development of the Cooperation Zone, and the Greater Bay Area, further integrating into the overall development of the country.

Rector Liu highlighted CityU’s dedication to developing top-notch disciplines, internationally accredited faculties, and high-quality programs, while actively adapting to evolving needs in talent development, embracing an internationalized approach to education, prioritizing interdisciplinary subjects, and cultivating innovation, entrepreneurship, and comprehensive abilities through industry-academic collaboration and robust support for innovation and entrepreneurship.

Rector Liu concluded his speech by offering three expectations for the graduates:

• (1). Embrace a strong sense of social responsibility, dedicate knowledge to serving society and actively integrate into national development.
• (2). Embrace lifelong learning, continuously seeking growth and change, adapting and evolving with the changing world.
• (3). Reflect on learning and practice skills, achieve success through pragmatic action.

 

The ceremony bestowed honorary doctorates upon several distinguished individuals, including Academician Zheng Weimin and Academician Quanshui Zheng, who each received the Doctor of Science honoris causa, and Mark Jiapeng Wang, who was awarded the Doctor of Education honoris causa.

Academician Zheng Weimin is an expert in the field of supercomputing and computer system architecture, as well as a luminary in high-performance computing He is an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, a professor at the Department of Computer Science and Technology of the Tsinghua University, and the director of the Institute of High Performance Computing (IHPC).

Academician Quanshui Zheng is an expert in solid mechanics and micro- and nano-mechanics, and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He is a professor at the International Graduate School of Tsinghua University, founding director of Tsinghua University’s Center for Nano and Micro Mechanics, founding director of the Institute of Superlubricity Technology of the Research Institute of Tsinghua University in Shenzhen, deputy director of Tsinghua University’s Teaching Committee, and dean of the X-Institute in Shenzhen.

Mr. Mark Jiapeng Wang is a member of the International Council of the United World Colleges (UWC) and holds the position of vice chairman of the Chairs’ Committee. He is the chair of the UWC China National Committee and also deputy to the 13th and 14th National People’s Congress.

Three graduate representatives, Wu Chou Kit from the Faculty of Innovation and Design, Xu Xiaotian from the Faculty of Business, and Zou Jie from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, gave speeches reflecting on their time at CityU and sharing their insights and achievements.