The digital economy has become a key driver of China’s high-quality economic development. From major national strategies to the Ministry of Education’s disciplinary planning, there is an urgent demand for talent cultivation in the digital economy. Developing related academic programs has therefore become an important task of the times.
In response to the national digital economy development strategy, and to support the transformation and upgrading of the International Trade major within the Institute of Applied Economics while steadily advancing the application for a new academic program, a faculty delegation from SEM visited the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE) from December 11 to 12, 2025 to conduct a specialized study on the Digital Economy major. The delegation included Wen Xiaohui, Wang Xiaolei, Gao Tianzhi, Wang Xia, and Xie Mufang.
During the visit, experts from UIBE—including Yang Jun, Director of the Digital Economy Laboratory, and Xu Chaoyang, Associate Dean of the School of Economics—provided a comprehensive introduction to the university’s innovative practices in digital economy education. Their presentation covered topics such as the “dual-core-driven” disciplinary framework, the establishment of a high-level digital economy laboratory, and the value-oriented approach that integrates academic research with real-world impact. They also introduced the pyramid-structured curriculum system for the Digital Economy major, faculty transformation pathways, and talent cultivation experiences. In particular, they emphasized the core principles of economics-driven disciplinary logic and alignment with industry needs in program development.
Drawing on the university’s strong engineering tradition and energy industry background, faculty representatives from our School engaged in in-depth discussions with UIBE scholars on key issues related to the development of a new program, including program development, interdisciplinary integration, and faculty transition strategies. The open and detailed sharing by UIBE experts provided valuable insights for clarifying the program positioning and improving the curriculum design for the proposed new major.
The visit yielded fruitful outcomes. Immediately after the research trip, Director Gao Wei convened a special seminar to review the insights gained and transform them into concrete action plans.
Looking ahead, the Institute of Applied Economics will build upon the university’s engineering strengths in energy economics, focusing on the program orientation of serving national energy and resource security as well as digital transformation strategies while cultivating interdisciplinary talents with expertise in both mining/energy and economics. The institute will further reconstruct the curriculum system, develop interdisciplinary innovation platforms, and promote faculty transformation, striving to establish a distinctive new program integrating energy resources and the digital economy, thereby contributing to the continued advancement of the School’s disciplinary development.
Photo & Author: Gao Tianzhi
First Review: Gao Wei
Second Review: Jiang Hongyan
Third Review: Jiang Hongyan
