BARCELONA, Spain, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- China's research and innovation ecosystem and shared interests in marine sciences are drawing the University of Barcelona (UB) into closer cooperation with its Chinese counterparts, with mutual trust underpinning the planned venture, Raul Ramos, UB's vice-rector for internationalization policy, said in a recent interview with Xinhua.
Spanish universities have been expanding cooperation with China through joint teaching and research initiatives. For UB, this includes plans to establish a joint college with the Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT), one of China's leading universities, known for its strengths in engineering and scientific research.
"It's clear the Chinese authorities and Chinese universities have created an ecosystem of research, transference and innovation that's a benchmark for us," Ramos said.
He explained that UB's pursuit of quality teaching and research had brought it together with HIT. The planned joint college will be based at HIT's Weihai campus, in a coastal city in China's eastern Shandong Province.
Ramos highlighted the complementary strengths of the two institutions, particularly in addressing shared environmental challenges.
"We're very committed to the great global challenges and the defense of the oceans is one of them," he said, explaining that the Weihai campus's specialization in marine sciences and oceanography matched the strengths of UB's faculties of Biology and Chemistry.
Subject to approval by the Chinese and Catalan authorities, the HIT-UB Joint College aims to launch three dual master's degree programs related to marine sciences in the 2027-2028 academic year.
The college is expected to welcome its first students in September 2027, with an initial intake of 150 students, or 50 per program. Classes will be taught face-to-face in English. Students who successfully complete the programs would receive both Chinese and Spanish degrees, Ramos said, adding that the arrangement could further strengthen ties between the two institutions.
Spain's Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) and China's Beihang University have begun teaching at their joint institute Beihang Valencia Polytechnic Institute (BVPI) in Chinese eastern city Hangzhou this autumn. According to the institute, the partnership centers on artificial intelligence, bringing together educational resources, research platforms and industry networks from both countries.
For Ramos, the value of the UB-HIT project extends beyond the qualifications it will offer to the lasting relationships it could build among faculty members, researchers and students.
"At the level of teachers and researchers, we hope that networks of collaboration can be created in the long term," he said, adding that students could receive joint training and "take advantage of the best of the Chinese and Catalan educational systems."
Underpinning those ambitions, he stressed, is the trust developed between the two institutions from both Spain and China. "We've learned a lot from each other. There's a relationship of trust, which is very important to make the collaboration more sustainable in the long term," Ramos said.
