XJTLU launches the School of Mathematics and Physics

On 1 September, the School of Mathematics and Physics (SMP) held its launch event in the Central Building.

In his speech, Professor Youmin Xi, Executive President of Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, said: “To realise the value of education, it is crucial to transition from just imparting knowledge to helping students grow.

“The School is committed to promoting research-led and interest-driven learning by transforming students’ learning behaviour. It will also provide foundational knowledge for other school subjects and be a strong driver for interdisciplinary research.”

He emphasised the significance of maths education to students’ future development. “To Year One students, maths is particularly important, as it lays the foundation for research in different fields.”

SMP has 92 academic staff members from 17 countries and is divided into five departments: the Department of Financial and Actuarial Mathematics, the Department of Applied Math, the Department of Foundational Mathematics, the Department of Pure Mathematics, and the Department of Physics. The School provides three undergraduate programmes, two master’s programmes and one doctoral programme.

In his speech, Professor Fei Ma, acting dean of the School, commended the strengths of the programmes in the new school: “From 2018 to 2022, 2,460 students graduated from the BSc Actuarial Science, Applied Mathematics, and Financial Mathematics programmes, among which 745 furthered their studies in G5 universities, and 34 were accepted by Oxford University and Cambridge University.

“In the past three years, 13 projects of the Departments of Mathematics and Physics were funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China. We not only pursue excellence in research and teaching but also develop students’ potential by encouraging their self-motivation, independent learning and creativity.”

Professor Ma said the newly established SMP will relentlessly explore “student-centred” teaching, and increase its research capability and influence by deepening cooperation with other XJTLU schools and departments, XJTLU Entrepreneur College (Taicang), as well as off-campus stakeholders.

More than 100 guests attended the event, including: Professor Qiuling Chao, Vice President of Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University; Professor Zhoulin Ruan, Associate Vice President of Education; Chuanhui Zhu, Director of the Centre for Student Affairs; Dr Gang Liu, Deputy Dean of the School of Mathematics and Physics; as well as deans of all the schools at the University, and the staff of SMP.

By Luyao Wang
Translated by Xiangyin Han
Edited by Bo Kou and Patricia Pieterse