The Robotics Engineering program at Zhejiang Normal University is one of the earliest approved new engineering majors in China, boasting a strong faculty. Established in 2019, this program originated from the Mechanical and Electrical Technology Education major. In the 2023 Ranking of Chinese Universities by Subject, it was rated B+, ranking within the top 30%.
I.Professional Orientation is Rational, and Faculty Conditions are Excellent
This major caters to the national strategy of Chinese Manufacturing 2025 and the demand for transformation and upgrading of the manufacturing industry. It offers two directions: Industrial Robotics and Intelligent Robotics, with a focus on cultivating new engineering talents who possess capabilities in optimal structural design of robots, robot system integration, and development of intelligent control algorithms for robots. The major boasts high-quality faculty conditions, with 35 full-time teachers. Among them, 70% hold doctoral degrees, and over 50% have overseas experience.
II. Relying on Innovation Platforms and Emphasizing Industry-Education Integration
The Robotics Engineering program relies on one national-level and three provincial-level scientific research and innovation platforms, providing abundant conditions for talent cultivation. Based on this program, a national-level rail transit and intelligent manufacturing industry-education integration training base, a Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory, a Zhejiang Provincial 2011 Collaborative Innovation Center, and a Zhejiang Provincial International Science and Technology Cooperation Base have been established. A large number of advanced experimental and training laboratories have been constructed, including: 10 sets of industrial robot basic experimental and training equipment, 8 sets of robot system application stations for industry-education integration, 1 set of intelligent manufacturing systems for industry-education integration, 40 sets of intelligent manufacturing software, 10 sets of industrial internet control platforms, as well as a football robot laboratory, a humanoid robot laboratory, a 3D printing laboratory, a machine vision laboratory, etc., with a total original value of equipment exceeding RMB 80 million. Additionally, the college possesses centrally and locally co-funded characteristic laboratories for Modern Advanced Manufacturing Technology and Precision Mechanical Drive and Control Technology; a provincial-level experimental teaching demonstration center for mechanical engineering; provincial fiscal laboratories for Industrial Automation, Mechanical and Electrical Performance Testing Technology for Automobile Parts, and Advanced Forming and Manufacturing; and a provincial-level engineering practice education base jointly established by Zhejiang Normal University and Zhejiang Wanliyang Transmission Co., Ltd.
This major aims to cultivate advanced engineering talents who possess solid knowledge of mathematics, physics, and other natural sciences, as well as a certain level of humanities and social science literacy. Students will systematically master the basic theories, methods, and skills related to robotics engineering, including mechanics, automation, computer science, electronics technology, and sensor technology. They will acquire capabilities in robot technology research and development, design, maintenance, and management, and demonstrate strong innovative spirits and engineering practice skills. Upon graduation, these talents will be able to engage in design and manufacturing, technological development, applied research, operational management, maintenance, and other related work in the robotics and related industries.
In the cultivation process, we adhere to a mode of education that integrates science and education, industry and education, and integrates learning with competition. We actively encourage students to participate in various scientific research competitions and industrial public relations projects to cultivate their hands-on and practical abilities. To promote integration, we emphasize educational philosophy, introduce incentive policies, create conditional platforms, and foster a cultural atmosphere, supporting mutual promotion between teaching and research, facilitating the growth of both teaching units and research teams, collaborating on scientific research and reform of teaching content, promoting the transformation of scientific research results into teaching content, and establishing a three-dimensional interactive framework of teaching-research-learning-practice. We also form a cooperative and inquiry-based learning and research community among teachers and students, making student participation in scientific research an effective teaching form. This helps students learn research methods early, join research teams early, participate in research projects early, and achieves an organic interaction between research-based teaching and exploratory learning.
Following the main line of cooperative school-enterprise operations, cooperative education, cooperative employment, and cooperative development, we comprehensively build a cooperative education platform and implement projects to enhance technological innovation and social service capabilities. We adhere to the concept of harmonious coexistence and mutual benefit between schools and local areas, deeply cultivate new ideas for connotative development, and comprehensively promote and implement strategies of integration, intelligence, and internationalization. We align with national strategies, integrate with the local economy, achieve harmonious coexistence in industry-education integration, and seek mutual benefit in school-enterprise cooperation, constructing a high-level industry-education integration ecosystem.
III. Enhancing Practical Abilities and Actively Participating in Competitions
We deeply implement the integrated teaching concept of educating through competitions, promoting teaching through competitions, and promoting learning through competitions, fully leveraging the promoting role of competitions in teaching. This approach fosters the development of academic atmosphere, inspires individual student development, and cultivates students' innovative consciousness, practical abilities, and team spirit.
Under this cultivation model, a number of outstanding students have emerged. In 2018, one of our students won the Gold Award at the China International Internet+ College Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition. In recent years, our students have won over 20 provincial competition awards and led more than 20 national-level college student innovation and entrepreneurship projects. More than 50% of our graduates choose to pursue further education at graduate schools, including prestigious domestic double first-class universities such as Zhejiang University, University of Science and Technology of China, The University of Hong Kong, Northeastern University, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Taiyuan University of Technology, and Hefei University of Technology. Some students have also gone to renowned overseas universities such as The University of Sheffield and The University of Leeds to pursue graduate studies. Our graduates' employment destinations include local government organizations, education bureaus, and well-known domestic enterprises and institutions such as The High School Attached to Beijing Normal University, Hikvision, Bosch, and China National Petroleum Corporation, with an initial employment rate exceeding 95%.
IV. Emerging Excellent Examples Based on the Mutual Promotion of Competitions and Learning
By promoting learning through competitions and competitions through learning, a number of outstanding award-winning students have emerged. Taking He Ping, a 2018 graduate, as an example, during his time at school, he won numerous awards and honors, including the Provincial Government Scholarship, the title of Excellent League Member, the title of Meritorious Student, the Research and Innovation Excellence Individual Scholarship, the Gold Award at the 2021 China Undergraduate Engineering Practice and Innovation Ability Competition, the First Prize at the 15th National College Student Transportation Science and Technology Competition, the Third Prize at the 13th China College Student Computer Design Contest, the Excellence Award at the 5th China College Student Crane Innovation Contest, the Second Prize at the 3rd China College Intelligent Robot Innovation Contest, the First Prize at the 6th Zhejiang Provincial College Student Engineering Training Comprehensive Ability Competition, the First Prize at the 7th Zhejiang Provincial College Student Engineering Training Comprehensive Ability Competition, the First Prize in the Undergraduate Group at the 17th Zhejiang Provincial College Student Mechanical Design Competition, and the Second Prize at the 11th Zhejiang Provincial College Student Physics Science and Technology Innovation Competition, among others, totaling more than 20 awards and honors. He was also granted one utility model patent and participated in one national-level innovation project. Mr. He Ping has been admitted to pursue graduate studies at the School of Mechanical Engineering of Zhejiang University without the need to take the entrance examination.
