Source: International Cooperation Office
Proofread and Edited by the International Cooperation Office
Recently, Chen Rui, Member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and Vice President of Capital Medical University (CMU), met with a delegation led by Edilio Mazzoleni, Vice President of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (UCSC). The two sides held in-depth discussions on student exchange programs to Italy, faculty and student visits, and research collaboration.
The Italian delegation included Giovanni Gambassi from UCSC's School of Medicine, Gianluca Samsa, Deputy Director of the Office of International Cooperation, and Zhou Qianru, Senior Officer of the China Office. CMU attendees included Guo Rui, Director of the Academic Affairs Office; Ma Lu, Director of the International Cooperation Office; project leaders from relevant schools, departments, and affiliated hospitals; as well as faculty and student representatives.
Remarks by Chen Rui
Chen Rui, on behalf of the university, welcomed Vice President Mazzoleni and his delegation for their return visit. He noted that since the establishment of the partnership between the two institutions, cooperation has yielded remarkable results and the friendship has continued to deepen. From October to November last year, the first group of CMU students was selected to study at UCSC, gaining valuable experience. This October, the university will sign a new round of cooperation agreements with UCSC. Next year, students will be sent to Italy in two groups for three-month clinical clerkships, further expanding the depth and breadth of their practical training. He emphasized that this meeting specifically invited project leaders and student representatives from both sides to participate, aiming to build consensus through face-to-face exchanges and inject new momentum into the collaborative cultivation of internationally oriented medical talent. It is anticipated that both parties will advance in tandem and jointly explore a cooperation paradigm with greater foresight.
Remarks by Mazzoleni
Professor Mazzoleni highly commended the progress achieved thus far in the bilateral cooperation. He stated that UCSC would fully provide high-quality resources and comprehensive support for CMU students studying in Italy, while also looking forward to expanding cooperation to a broader range of disciplinary fields, fostering deeper impact in medicine, life sciences, and interdisciplinary frontiers.
Exchange and Discussion
At the symposium, student representative Zhang Mengxi, who participated in the first group of the exchange program in 2025, shared her firsthand experience and valuable insights from her clinical clerkship at UCSC's affiliated Policlinico Gemelli. Student representatives Li Yilin and Wang Yuxin, scheduled to be sent in 2027, engaged in productive on-site discussions with the Italian counterparts on program details, cross-cultural differences in medical practice between China and Italy, and other topics.
In subsequent consultation sessions, project leaders from both sides held practical discussions on curriculum optimization, course alignment, clerkship rotation details, student living support, and cultural integration, reaching multiple consensus points for improvement. On this basis, both parties agreed to expand the scope of cooperation from student exchanges to faculty visits, joint research initiatives, and collaborative development of affiliated hospitals. They also exchanged forward-looking views on new opportunities such as the translation of CMU's medical technology achievements in Europe and addressing global health challenges, jointly exploring a path of mutual benefit and win-win development.
About Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore：
Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, with its main campus in Milan and additional campuses in Brescia, Piacenza-Cremona, and Rome, is one of Italy's premier institutions of higher education. The university comprises 12 schools covering humanities, philosophy, economics, law, agriculture, food science, medicine, and other fields. Its affiliated Policlinico Gemelli has been consecutively ranked as the best hospital in Italy by Newsweek and currently ranks 33rd globally, making it a pivotal center for medical research and healthcare services in Europe.