Shenandoah University And Yangtze Normal University Launch Landmark Engineering Partnership In China
A partnership years in the making has reached a historic milestone
Shenandoah University and Yangtze Normal University (YZNU) in China have established a landmark partnership to launch two collaborative undergraduate engineering programs, making Shenandoah the only foreign university in China to be approved for two programs simultaneously.
The programs – engineering physics and computer engineering – will be delivered on the YZNU campus, which serves as one of Shenandoah’s official off-campus instructional sites in China. Structured under a “4+0” model, students will complete all four years of study in China and earn degrees from both institutions.
Beginning in Fall 2026, the programs will enroll up to 240 students annually through China’s national college entrance examination (Gaokao). With steady cohort growth, total enrollment is expected to exceed 800 students by 2029, which would make it one of Shenandoah University’s largest and most impactful global academic initiatives.
With the support and vision of President Tracy Fitzsimmons, Ph.D., Shenandoah’s global engagement efforts – led by Yvonne Chen, Ph.D., senior associate dean of global initiatives at Shenandoah, in collaboration with Dr. Wen Wu, vice president of Yangtze Normal University – first took shape in 2018. What began as a shared commitment to academic exchange steadily evolved into a deep and strategic institutional partnership.
Early collaborations included the establishment of a Mandarin language program within Shenandoah’s College of Arts and Sciences, as well as faculty exchange, with YZNU professors traveling to the United States to teach and engage with SU students. These foundational efforts built trust, alignment, and a shared vision for global education.
In 2024, both institutions took a significant step forward, formally committing to develop joint academic programs under China’s Sino-U.S. cooperative education framework. Years of coordination, planning, and regulatory preparation followed, during which Dr. Chen; Shenandoah University Provost Karen Abraham, Ph.D.; and Vice President for Administration and General Counsel Phil Evans, J.D., worked closely together to guide the partnership to final approval.
That work culminated in a major achievement when, in September 2025, SU and YZNU received official approval from China’s Ministry of Education to launch two collaborative undergraduate engineering programs.
Located in Chongqing, one of China’s largest and fastest-growing metropolitan regions, Yangtze Normal University is a comprehensive public institution serving more than 22,000 students across five campuses. Its modern facilities and strong emphasis on applied education provide an ideal environment for large-scale, practice-oriented learning.
