Historic Breakthroughs

The Institute has deeply implemented its strategy of strengthening the faculty through talent development, continuously optimizing the faculty structure and achieving historic breakthroughs in the recruitment and cultivation of high-level talents. In 2025, the Institute added three nationally recognized young talents and three individuals selected into Shanghai municipal talent programs. The level and structure of talents have been further optimized, laying a solid foundation for the Institute’s high-quality development. Guillaume SALHA GALVAN became the first foreign associate professor appointed to a long-term tenure-track position at the Institute.

Adhering to its international orientation in education, the proportion of foreign faculty has remained steadily at around 40%. In 2025, foreign faculty members Zied MOUMNI and François CAUNEAU were selected as Shanghai Municipal International Teaching Masters. Mathematics teacher Hamza BOUKILI was awarded the “Kaiyuan Top Ten Teachers” honor of SJTU and, as a Shanghai Young Scientific and Technological Talent and the only foreign faculty representative, participated in President Xi Jinping’s inspection visit to the “MoSu Space” large-model innovation ecosystem in Shanghai.

Promoting the Institute’s transformational development, and relying on jointly established national key laboratories, the Institute supported Professor Zhong Shengyi and French Dean Zied MOUMNI in forming its first research team. Professor Zhong Shengyi received the Second Ruiyuan Young Science and Technology Award. Actively aligning with national and Shanghai strategic needs, the Institute clarified key directions in interdisciplinary fields and achieved rapid growth in the number of projects, research funding, and academic publications.

The Institute has deepened strategic cooperation with top French institutions and expanded its international cooperation network with multiple achievements. Three university-level cooperation agreements were promoted between SJTU and institutions such as HEC Paris, École des Ponts ParisTech, and Université Paris Cité, advancing the cultivation of interdisciplinary talents in engineering and management. Meanwhile, the Institute established student exchange mechanisms with two top French preparatory schools, Lycée Louis-le-Grand and Lycée Henri-IV, launching short-term immersive learning programs.

Key Highlights

Guided by the blueprint of the 15th five-year plan, the Institute has continuously strengthened the ideological foundation of international education. Faculty members were organized to conduct on-site learning activities at the Red Flag Canal, and seminars on the 15th five-year plan were held to further consolidate consensus on reform and development. Joint learning and collaboration activities were carried out with 12 institutions, including the Shanghai Zhu Guangya Strategic Science and Technology Research Institute. On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War, over 30 foreign faculty members and students were organized to visit the Sihang Warehouse, fostering their understanding of and affinity for China.

The Institute further strengthened the “Seven Dimensions and One Core” brand centered on the Sino-French spirit and leveraged artificial intelligence technologies to build a digital archive of the centennial Work-Study Movement in France. Students were organized to follow the footsteps of great figures by visiting the Huangpu Wharf in Shanghai, the Memorial of Montargis in France, and Deng Xiaoping Square, allowing patriotism to take root in their hearts.

Taking the large-scale discussion on educational philosophy as an opportunity, the Institute engaged in in-depth discussions and explorations with peer departments inside and outside the University. A talent cultivation model was clarified, centered on an international outstanding engineer curriculum system, a university–industry practice system, and a global competency development system. The “Descartes Class,” featuring mathematics, AI, and engineering, was launched, comprehensively upgrading the talent cultivation system to version 2.0.

Focusing on the internationalization needs of engineering education, the Institute has continuously promoted the compilation and dissemination of French-language mathematics and science textbook series, filling gaps in domestic Sino-French cooperative teaching materials. A total of 25 textbooks have been published and highly recognized at the University’s textbook work conference. The compilation team was awarded the “SJTU Youth Civilization Unit.” Efforts are being intensified to advance digital textbook development, with the next goal of achieving breakthroughs in textbook-related awards.

The essence of French engineering education lies in a solid foundation in mathematics and science and strong practical capabilities. The Institute has incorporated three stages of corporate internships into its talent cultivation plan. In 2025, four new corporate partners, including Airbus China and COMAC, were added. The corporate club now includes over 40 member companies, with 12 off-campus internship bases, providing more than 230 internship positions annually and continuously strengthening the collaborative education platform.

The Institute is committed to cultivating talents with global competence. The employment rate of the Class of 2025 reached 100%. Leveraging the unique strengths of bilingual English–French education combined with engineering disciplines, four students undertook internships at international organizations such as the OECD and actively participated in global governance. Among them, student Chen Yiyang was selected by UNHCR as the annual “Spotlight Intern” and featured on its official website, fully demonstrating the Institute’s students’ outstanding professional capabilities and sense of mission. Young alumni have also begun to emerge, with two outstanding alumni joining top French engineering schools as assistant professors in 2025.

Throughout the year, the Institute hosted 403 international students, received more than 20 international delegations, sent 61 students abroad for dual-degree and semester exchange programs, and welcomed 31 visiting professors for teaching. The Institute successfully organized a visit of the Shanghai-based Consuls General to SJTU, receiving high praise from the French side. Students in France were organized to attend special lectures by Salem Prize laureate Professor Wang Hong on the “Hanging Valley Conjecture” and by renowned mathematician Professor Wang Yilin, building bridges to top scholars and broadening academic horizons.

A multi-level platform for Sino-French cultural exchange was established. The Institute successfully hosted the finals of the flagship Sino-French educational cooperation event, Ma Thèse en 3 Minutes, earning high recognition from the Embassy of France in China. In collaboration with IPP and PSL student associations, a Lantern Festival dinner cruise on the Seine River was organized to promote Chinese traditional culture. More than 20 Sino-French themed activities were held, including city walks, light gastronomy salons, sports meets, cultural visits, and rural tours, helping international faculty and students integrate. Several “Mutual Learning of Civilizations” events were organized, with original programs created by Sino-French faculty winning second prize at the staff arts festival. The influence of the Sino-French Cultural Festival continued to rise, with over 5,000 participants.

Featured Cases

In 2025, the Institute established the “Descartes Class,” creating a three-pillar-driven model of mathematics, AI, and engineering to cultivate top talents, aiming to nurture future academic leaders and top engineering scientists in the AI era. The first cohort of 22 students will travel as a group to top French preparatory schools for immersive mathematics and science training, comprehensively enhancing core competencies and innovation capabilities. The establishment of the Descartes Class has attracted widespread social attention and extensive coverage by mainstream media.

In 2025, the Institute systematically advanced overseas recruitment of outstanding young talents, holding 10 recruitment events abroad and successfully organizing the Sixth International Young Scholars Forum. These efforts have built a reservoir of high-level overseas talents and laid a solid foundation for continued recruitment in 2026.