CPaCE News

PHOTO: CSULB students at a reception hosted by the city government of Qingdao, China.

Ten CSULB students recently experienced an immersive tour of Qingdao, a city in China’s Shandong province. The six-day trip in January 2024 was organized by the Qingdao Municipal Foreign Affairs Office and the Long Beach-Qingdao Sister City Association, which fosters exchanges between the two cities in economy and trade, port management, education, and cultural exchanges.

Heidi Zhang, Director of International Training Programs at CSULB’s College of Professional and Continuing Education (CPaCE) joined Rene Giron, recent graduate of CSULB’s International Studies program, along with current CSULB students Louise Ramos, Nnadia Sithideth, Alexandra Nicole Ugale Filarca, Khang Kenneth Huynh, Jordan McClain, Mia Linda Castillo, Collin Barsh, Weibo Zhang, Heather Ma, Chloe Kapui Kwan. The Port of Long Beach partially funded the trip, with each student receiving a $1,000 scholarship.

PHOTO: CSULB students were welcomed in a ceremony by officials from Qingdao University of Technology.

The itinerary included visits to significant landmarks and companies in Qingdao, where students participated in cultural activities, enjoyed local cuisine, and learned about the advanced technology of large-scale, automated terminals at the Qingdao Port. They also met with QUT engineering students to get firsthand experience with robotics, race cars, and a virtual reality lab.

PHOTO: CSULB students got hands-on experience with a race car designed by students at Qingdao University of Technology.

Throughout the visit, the students’ activities were covered by national and international Chinese media outlets. The group is among the first U.S. students to visit China following President Xi Jinping’s invitation for 50,000 young Americans to visit China over the next five years to increase cultural understanding and academic collaboration. The announcement was made during Jinping’s meeting with President Biden during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings in San Francisco in November 2023.

Click here to learn more about International Training Programs at CSULB.