A University in Its Move to Contribute to Diversity of Civilizations – An Interview with President of Beijing Foreign Studies University Peng Long

A Foreign Student-Friendly University

China Today:For foreigners eager to learn more about Chinese culture and master the language, what courses of BFSU are recommendable to them? How is BFSU doing in this field?

Peng Long:In the past, most foreign students came to our university to study Chinese language, history, and culture. However, things have changed a lot over the past several years. For example, in our International Business School, there are about 300 to 400 foreign students from 60-plus countries. They came to study China’s economic management.  There are also nearly 100 foreign students in our School of International Relations and Diplomacy.

In particular, we find that lots of students from countries along the Road and Belt tend to select BFSU because our university has courses in their native languages, allowing them to study without a language barrier. We also encourage teachers to give lectures on China’s development in their native languages, which are very popular among foreign students.

I think these changes are closely associated with China’s development and the country’s rise on the international stage. Many students from countries along the Belt and Road see the growing importance of China’s relations with their countries, the primary reason for them to study in China. I believe they feel a sense of purpose, and will make great contributions to their countries’ relations with China in the future.

China Today:BFSU operates many Confucius institutes worldwide in partnership with local colleges. How are these institutes faring?

Peng Long:As a Chinese university running the biggest number of Confucius institutes, BFSU now runs 22 Confucius institutes in 17 countries across Europe, Asia, and America, partnering with local colleges. We tend to select the world’s top universities for partnership, in particular in Central and Eastern Europe and countries along the Belt and Road. In fact, those Confucius institutes we are running have promoted BFSU’s exchanges with our partner universities, and enhanced our language teaching capacity building and studies of individual countries.

The registered student number in these Confucius institutes has soared to 27,672 in 2016 from less than 2,000 in 2007. This steep growth owes much to China’s overall development and its contribution to the world’s development. Students mostly want to learn about the basic situation of our country and its culture. Of course, some students have shown special interest in specific aspects, like Chinese art, our legal system, and economic management. However, basically it’s their interest in Chinese history and culture that has prompted them to register in our courses.