SU's partner RCSI ranks 1st in the world for 'Good Health and Well-being' in THE University Impact Rankings

Times Higher Education (THE) recently recognized universities worldwide for their social and economic impact on health and well-being according to the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland (RCSI), SU's partner of the International College of Pharmaceutical Innovation, ranked 1st globally among more than 1,200 participating universities.

RCSI is Ireland's oldest and most prestigious medical school, focusing on higher education and research in medicine and health sciences. To achieve their mission - to educate, nurture and discover for the benefit of human health, they devote themselves to improving human well-being and global health through collaborative innovation in education, research, and services.

SU and RCSI have been working together for more than 10 years. In 2012, SU hired Prof. Waddington, an academician of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Ireland, as the Chair Professor of the College of Pharmaceutical Sciences. In 2015, the two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding and were approved for funding under the Erasmus+ program, an EU higher education project, which facilitated more than 50 mutual visits and exchanges of teachers from both sides and secured a stable and long-term cooperative relationship. SU and RCSI signed the 2+2 Joint Undergraduate Training Agreement and 2+2 Joint PhD Training Agreement for pharmacy majors in 2018 and 2020, respectively. In 2021, the 2+2 Joint PhD Program was granted the International Cooperative Training Program for Innovative Talents of the China Scholarship Council. These joint student training programs have promoted scientific research cooperation and boosted sustainabledevelopment ofdiscipline construction and talent training.

To further deepen the cooperation, SU and RCSI collaborated to establish the International College of Pharmaceutical Innovation, the first Sino-foreign Joint Educational Institution of Soochow University. The International College of Pharmaceutical Innovation is located at the Wujiang Future Campus of SU. It will offer two 4-year undergraduate programs in pharmacy and biopharmaceutical sciences and a 3-year master's program in pharmacy. This institute has been approved by the Ministry of Education and will enroll its first students in September 2024.

Relying on the superior disciplines of SU and RCSI, the International College of Pharmaceutical Innovation will integrate both parties' high-quality teaching and research resources, innovate the training modes, and cultivate top-notch talents for pharmaceutical R&D and services. Through the strong alliance, integrated development, and resource grafting, we will establish a high-level international pharmaceutical talent training system with Chinese characteristics, satisfy the needs of people-oriented health, and serve the local and national biopharmaceutical industries in all aspects.