On August 12, 2002, the groundbreaking ceremony of Chengdu Neusoft Institute of Information Technology was held at the foot of Mt Qingcheng in Dujiangyan City of Sichuan Province. It’s the third campus of Neusoft IIT of the country after Dalian Neusoft IIT and Nanhai Neusoft IIT—all established by Neusoft Group and Northeastern University. The foundation and establishment of Chendu Neusoft Institute of Information Technology will continuously send excellent talents to implementing the strategy of developing-the-west. Leaders of Sichuan Province, Chengdu City as well as local correlative leaders attended the groundbreaking ceremony.

     Chengdu Neusoft IIT occupies 1500 Chinese mu with the total investment of RMB 500 million. The whole project is divided into three stages. It’s a specialized IT institute with the largest investment scale in west China. The institute plans to recruit students facing to Sichuan and other areas all over the country where IT is hot. The number of current recruits is about 1500 students and is expected to reach 12000 persons in the year of 2006.

    Chengdu Neusoft IIT is sited at the foot of Mt Qingcheng of Dujiangyan City, which is a beautiful national historic cultural city and rated first among China’s Excellent Tourist Cities. Dujiangyan and Qingcheng Mountain are both World Cultural Heritage Sites. The Dujiangyan Irrigation Project is a perfect example of man and nature living together in unity and harmony. Qingcheng Mountain is the birthplace of Taoism. The mild climate, fresh air, quite and secluded environment, centuries-old history and profound culture create a suitable area for students to study.

    Prof. He Jicheng, secretary of the CPC of Northeastern University and President of Northeastern University said at the news conference that Neusoft Institute of Information Technology was another important way for Northeastern University to achieve educational innovation. Northeastern University is one of the thirty-three leading universities with graduate schools affiliated directly with the Ministry of Education in China. For the past ten years, Northeastern University has cultivated the most excellent software and solution company of China----Neusoft Group by continuously exploring the development mode of the integration of “production, education, research”. In response, Neusoft Group invested in education and supported Northeastern University to carry out the new economic era’s education reformation and innovation taking advantage of its resources in the IT industry. This kind of development mode of “education”—“industry”—“education” created by both Northeastern University and Neusoft Group will pioneer a new road for our country’s reformation and innovation of higher education.

    Dr.Liu Jiren, Chairman and President of Neusoft Group expressed that the foundation of Chengdu Neusoft IIT was Neusoft’s second act in implementing the strategy of developing the west after the establishment of Neusoft’s southwest headquarters in Chengdu. It signaled that Neusoft would take root in West China and serve, in constructing all information field of West China by offering top-ranking software solutions and excellent IT talents.

    Liu Jiren believed that education was the necessary part of Neusoft’s solution, and education was also the basis for national economy’s sustaining, sound and rapid development. As a company initiated from a university and became a public company listed in stock market, Neusoft deeply knew the kind of talents that companies and countries needed for the information era with economic globalization. Today, it’s well worthy effort of Northeastern University and Neusoft Group proceeding from online-education and IT education to explore the education mode and operating mechanism under the market economy system. We firmly believe that this new kind of operating mechanism will benefit from the exploration and innovation of China’s higher education mode and rise of China’s education.

    According to Dr. Wen Tao, Vice President of Neusoft Group and President of Neusoft IIT (Dalian), Chengdu Neusoft IIT also adheres to NEU Neusoft IIT’s brandnew education philosophy of “Education Creates the Values of students”, aiming at cultivating IT talents with “internationalized, Pragmatic and individualized” quality. Chengdu NEUSOFT IIT will rely on Northeastern University and Neusoft Group’s resource advantages and influence in the field of education and IT at home and abroad, taking advantage of the basic facility, the environmental resources and local historic and cultural superiority of Dujiangyan, Sichuan to achieve the unity of education, IT, and environment as well as culture. This will draw IT talents to Sichuan Province and lead to West China’s development of information technology and economy.

    Under the direction of Dr. Zhang Yinghui, President of Neusoft IIT Chengdu, Chengdu Neusoft IIT will develop multi-level degree education including junior college diploma program, Bachelor degree program and graduate program (including Master level and Doctorate level) in the computer field (two major: computer science & technology and Information Technology & Business Management). This will be achieved by means of the modern education mode combining with face-to-face education and e-Learning education, besides, it will setting up a computer post-doctorate workstation. Meanwhile, the institute will contribute to develop the lifelong education program facing social organization as well as individual and set up “virtual university” for enterprise and government; providing educational organization and social group with digital teaching resource. We are committed to become the excellent education service supplier integrating diploma education, lifelong education service and education resource development in Western China.

    Zhang Ningsheng, Secretary of CPC Sichuan Dujiangyan Municipal Committee said that Northeastern University is a well-known university in China and Neusoft Group which it was cultivated by has become a flag in China’s software field. Northeastern University and Neusoft Group brought their common advanced school management theory and IT industry development theory to the area of Dujiangyan, Sichuan Province. It is complemented by the local environment and cultural resources. We firmly believe that this action will make a great contribution for training many information technology talents for Sichuan Province as well as West China. The local government will definitely provide preferential policies and beneficial services for the institute’s establishment and development.