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Queen’s took important steps to grow its connections in China and Hong Kong this fall. A delegation visited leading Chinese universities, met with alumni in the region, and joined events that showcased Queen’s academic strength and global partnerships. From October 23 to 28, university leaders, led by Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic) Matthew Evans and Vice-Provost (Global Engagement) Ann Tierney, met with more than a dozen institutions to renew ties, advance shared priorities, and identify areas for future collaboration.

"This visit strengthened our long-standing relationships in the region and opened new conversations about what we can achieve together,” says Vice-Provost Tierney. “Our partners share a genuine interest in deepening collaboration, creating opportunities that support students and academic engagement in both countries, and contributing to a wider global community rooted in shared purpose."

The delegation worked with partner institutions to explore opportunities for academic programming, student exchanges and recruitment, joint research and professional learning. This included a visit to Fudan University, Queen’s first partner in China, where both institutions marked more than 25 years of collaboration and reviewed shared work in public policy, business, law, environmental science and technology, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.  The partnership between Fudan and Queen’s is one of the oldest between a Canadian and Chinese university. 

Queen’s leaders also took part in the 2025 Global Business Education Expo at Fudan’s School of Management, where both sides explored opportunities for enhanced collaboration, including the possibility of joint professional degree programs. 

“We saw strong momentum for renewed collaboration across research and education,” says Dr. Evans. “These partnerships enrich our community and strengthen Queen’s global impact.” 

Provost Evans (right) and Professor Xing Chen, Vice President of Beijing Normal University, sign a letter of intent for articulation programs.

To expand Queen’s global community in China, the delegation hosted two major events during the visit. The Annual Autumn Banquet in Beijing brought together more than 90 alumni, partners, counsellors, prospective families, and Canadian officials, and featured a lecture by distinguished university professor John Smol (Biology) on his environmental research. In Hong Kong, more than 70 alumni, university partners, and friends attended a Queen’s reception with remarks from the Provost and the Consul General of Canada to Hong Kong and Macao. Queen’s is growing the Hong Kong alumni branch and inviting volunteers to support this work. 

During the visit, the delegation hosted two events for high school guidance counsellors that provided updates on academic programs, student experience, and pathways for prospective applicants. Dr. Smol and the Faculty Deans also delivered a series of masterclasses at high schools across the region, giving students an opportunity to engage directly with Queen’s teaching and research expertise, and strengthening connections with key secondary school partners.

Across other meetings, Queen’s discussed potential articulation agreements that would allow students to transfer to Queen’s in the upper years of their programs, as well as opportunities for executive training and joint academic programs with leading institutions such as Beijing Normal University, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and HKU SPACE, the continuing and professional education arm of the University of Hong Kong. These initiatives will support student mobility and enrolment in the future. Project teams across Queen’s are advancing new student mobility and enrolment programs, with implementation visits planned for February 2026 and a return delegation and Beijing banquet scheduled for November 2026.