Visiting Hillstone Networks to Explore the Forefront of Cybersecurity Together

On November 26, 2025, Dr Izhar Oswaldo Escudero Ornelas, the coordinator for the Final Year Project module at the School of Internet of Things, led a field trip for senior students to Hillstone Networks in Suzhou for an on-site study and exchange activity.

Through activities such as touring the Hillstone’s exhibition room, technical presentations, and discussion sessions, students gained a close understanding of the current state of the cybersecurity industry and corporate practices, enhancing their professional awareness and career planning insights.

At the beginning of the event, the mentor from Hillstone Networks briefly introduced the development history and business scope. By combining the recent cybersecurity landscape with real-time demonstrations of security alert dashboards, the mentor showcased the monitoring and response process for security incidents in actual work scenarios, giving students a preliminary and intuitive understanding of cybersecurity operations.

Subsequently, the students visited the Hillstone Networks’ product exhibition area. The mentor explained differentiated security monitoring architecture designs tailored to various industries and application scenarios, and shared response mechanisms and handling approaches for specific security incidents. This segment allowed students to experience how cybersecurity is implemented in practical work and understand the overall logic from problem identification to resolution.

During the discussion session, Mr Zhengqing Yan, General Manager of the Suzhou Division and Industry Mentor at School of Internet of Things XJTLU, engaged with faculty and students on industry status and development trends. Mr Yan invited mentor Mr Ziliang Zhang shared multidimensional insights into the cybersecurity field from a practitioner’s perspective. He also introduced relevant career positions and research directions, helping students clarify the path for professional learning and employment preparation.

This field trip, as a practical component of the final year project module, not only broadened students’ understanding of the cybersecurity industry but also established a bridge for school-enterprise exchange. It deeply embodies the Syntegrative Education philosophy of the XJTLU Entrepreneur College (Taicang), assisting students in better planning their career futures through the integration of theory and practice.