Dear faculty members, students, alumni, and friends:

As the old year departs and spring gradually returns, all things renew. At this auspicious moment of bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the new, of carrying forward the past while opening the future, on behalf of the university, I extend sincere greetings and heartfelt New Year wishes to all faculty and staff, retired leaders and comrades, alumni at home and abroad, and friends from all sectors of society who care for and support the university’s development.

The year 2025 was a year of vigorous strides and abundant achievements for the university on its new journey toward building a world-class skills-oriented university with Chinese characteristics. All members of the Shenzhen Polytechnic community have wielded diligence as their brush and practical action as their ink, inscribing brilliant traces of SZPU excellence across the vast landscape of higher vocational education and delivering a substantial and weighty annual report card.

This year, we upheld our banner and forged our soul, making Party building and ideological-political work more solid and powerful. We continued to consolidate and deepen the achievements of the national model university for Party building, adding one provincial-level model faculty Party organization and three provincial-level model branches, thereby further strengthening the combat effectiveness of grassroots Party organizations. Ideological-political work advanced with integrity and innovation: we took the lead in establishing the “Xi Jinping Thought Joint Teaching and Research Office,” continued to deliver “mobile ideological-political courses,” and upgraded the academy system and “one-stop” student community. Three outcomes were selected for inclusion in the Ministry of Education’s university ideological-political construction projects. The university successfully passed re-evaluation and retained its title as a “National Civilized Campus,” and hosted the “Fifteenth Five-Year Plan” Development Seminar on Cultural Quality Education in Vocational Schools.

This year, we anchored ourselves to first-class standards, comprehensively strengthening the university’s overall capacity. We were selected as one of the 60 “Double High” construction schools in the second phase of the national “Double High Plan,” hosted the Ministry of Education’s second-phase “Double High” construction promotion meeting and delivered an exchange presentation, and took the lead in establishing the “Double High” Construction Alliance. The university maintained its position at the top of major national rankings for vocational undergraduate institutions and was repeatedly invited as the sole representative of skills-oriented higher education institutions to speak at relevant Ministry of Education symposiums. We took the lead in establishing the Artificial Intelligence Branch of the China Vocational Education Association and showcased the future classroom at the World Digital Education Conference. The quality of enrolled students continued to improve: the minimum admission score for undergraduate programs in Guangdong’s physics category exceeded the special control line by 32 points, and admission scores in out-of-province regions all surpassed local special control lines.

This year, we deepened our commitment to talent cultivation, steadily elevating the level of education and training. The vocational undergraduate education system has become increasingly robust, with the number of undergraduate programs increasing to 26 and nine additional bachelor’s degree-granting programs approved. We established new entities such as the Artificial Intelligence Root Technology Industry Faculty, bringing the total number of distinctive industry faculties to 16. We took the lead in undertaking the Ministry of Education’s high-skilled talent cluster cultivation plan in the field of next-generation information technology, and the digital textbook Cangjie Programming Technology and Application was selected for the first batch of national digital textbooks. The university is expected to receive 33 provincial-level teaching achievement awards, with 23 textbooks included in the second batch of the “Fourteenth Five-Year Plan” national planning textbooks. Students won 25 medals in the finals of national comprehensive skills (innovation) competitions, and volunteers provided high-level service at the 15th National Games and the Paralympic Games.

This year, we pursued bold innovation, accelerating and enhancing the efficiency of applied research and achievement transformation. We added 498 horizontal projects and technology transfer projects, along with 231 vertical projects, with research funding received exceeding RMB 190 million. The layout of high-level discipline platforms continued to be optimized, with five new provincial/ministerial-level research platforms and three municipal/departmental-level platforms added. Thirteen new school-enterprise joint R&D centers were established, 149 patents were granted, 19 standards were led and formulated, and 76 technology achievements were transferred, providing strong support for solving technical challenges on the industrial front line.

This year, we gathered outstanding talent, continuously consolidating the foundation of our faculty team. Newly recruited faculty and staff totaled 145 individuals, including 12 high-level talents, 86 doctoral degree holders, and 33 postdoctoral researchers. Six individuals were selected for provincial talent programs, and 27 for municipal talent programs, reflecting strong momentum in strengthening the university through talent development. The university formulated the Detailed Rules for Teachers’ Professional Conduct and continued to prioritize the construction of teacher ethics and professional demeanor. Several measures to promote the development of young faculty members were introduced, further strengthening the support system for the growth of young teachers.

This year, we pursued openness and integration, expanding and enhancing external exchanges and cooperation. Five new “Shenzhen Digital Workshops” and one “Lingnan Craftsman Faculty” were established, and the “China–ASEAN Vocational Education Digital Capacity Building Center” was completed in Malaysia. The initiative of “vocational education going global” advanced steadily and vigorously. A series of high-level international conferences were successfully hosted, the “Shenzhen Protocol” entered a new phase of international promotion, the influence of the UNESCO Chair in Digitalization of Vocational and Technical Education continued to grow, and the quality and effectiveness of the university’s international vocational education journal showed marked improvement.

This year, we strengthened our foundation and pursued excellence, elevating the level of service and support capabilities. Major campus construction projects progressed steadily, renovation and upgrading of the Xili Campus were completed on schedule, the first phase of the Shenshan Campus successfully reached topping-out, and the main structure of the on-campus guaranteed rental housing project was fully completed, continuously improving the overall campus environment quality. Solid progress was made in building intelligent security and smart logistics systems. The level of intelligent campus security and emergency response capabilities improved significantly, and the university was recognized as the only “Guangdong Higher Education Smart Logistics Construction Demonstration Unit” in the province.

This year, we demonstrated responsibility and initiative, further highlighting our effectiveness in social service. Achievements in east-west collaboration and targeted assistance were abundant. The university participated in the Ministry of Education’s work conference on educational targeted support for Xinjiang and delivered an exchange presentation. The “Double Hundred Action” contributed to high-quality development in county-level economies, with relevant projects receiving high praise from the main leaders of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee. The university was selected as the lead institution for the Vocational School Teacher Training Subcommittee of the Ministry of Education’s Expert Advisory Committee on Teacher Team Construction, expanding and enhancing the scope and quality of vocational teacher training and social skills training.

Spring blossoms yield autumn fruits; no effort is wasted. Every achievement has been forged through the wisdom, sweat, and dedication of all members of the Shenzhen Polytechnic community, and would not have been possible without the strong support of our alumni and friends from all sectors of society. On behalf of the university, I express our most sincere gratitude to everyone.

A new journey has begun, and the path ahead is broad and bright. The year 2026 marks the opening year of the implementation of the “Fifteenth Five-Year Plan” and a pivotal year for the university to deepen reform, enhance its intrinsic quality, and pursue excellence. Let us unite more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, firmly grasp the historical mission and contemporary opportunities of vocational education, shoulder the responsibility of classified reform in higher education, serve as the vanguard of skills-oriented universities, and demonstrate greater contributions in supporting the construction of an education powerhouse, a science and technology powerhouse, and a talent powerhouse!

I sincerely wish all faculty members, students, alumni, and friends a happy New Year, good health, family happiness, and success in all endeavors!

I sincerely wish the university continued prosperity and new chapters of glory!

Xu Jianling, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and President

December 31, 2025