Programme Introduction

From July 20th to August 2nd, 2025, the two-week UNNC Summer School was successfully held on the UNNC campus. Nearly 70 students from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan of China, as well as some international students, took knowledge as a boat to explore and move forward in the academic atmosphere of UNNC, completing a fulfilling immersive and all-round journey of exploring and enhancing university academics and life.

This summer school is the official flagship summer school for high school students of University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC), which has been successfully held for 5 years. Hosted by the Centre for English Language Education (CELE) as the main delivery unit, the summer school includes English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses, content module courses, and liberal arts master courses, as well as a variety of extracurricular activities, allowing students to experience British-style education in an all-English environment and gain growth and inspiration. 

EAP Course

The English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses focus on English application skills in academic scenarios. Covering core content such as introduction to academic English, presentation skills, reading & writing strategies, and seminar communication, the courses adopt small - class interactive teaching to ensure that each participant receives targeted feedback and makes progress.

Students practice academic expression, literature review and group discussions in practice, gradually improving their practical application ability of academic English. After systematic training, everyone's adaptability to all - English learning scenarios has been significantly enhanced, laying a foundation for future academic exploration.

Content module courses

The professional module courses cover three fields: VR/AR technology, economics, and social media & language studies, which are taught in a small-class, seminar-based manner. Through case analysis, hands-on experience and group collaboration, students are guided to get an initial exposure to the core content of each professional field, helping high school students gain an early understanding of university majors and experience international academic thinking.

Liberal Arts class+

Liberal arts education has always been a teaching feature of University of Nottingham Ningbo China. As President Yang Fujia once said, "A student’s mind is not just a vessel to be filled with knowledge, but a spark to be ignited." In this summer school, we also set up several liberal arts master classes, career planning courses and laboratory experiences. The liberal arts master classes cover topics such as the Nobel Prize-winning MRI technology from the University of Nottingham, team collaboration, group decision-making, and molecular models; the career planning courses guide students to explore their own strengths and plan their future careers; students also visited the laboratories of UNNC, exploring new fields from various dimensions.

The series of activities under the "Liberal Arts Class+" not only have generality but also practicality. Students have broadened their horizons through communication, and improved their collaboration and critical thinking skills in practice, accumulating diverse experiences for their all-round development.

Extracurricular activities

#1 Team-building activity

The summer school is full of vitality at night. The three classes—Phoenix, Dragon and Griffin—carried out interesting team-building challenges. Students got closer to each other through interactions. These activities enhanced familiarity, exercised their abilities, and added unforgettable memories to the summer school.

#2 Sports Night 

On Sports Night, students got to experience a variety of sports activities: learning the lively Happy Dance, feeling the skills and strength of Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and enjoying the fun of team competition on the beach volleyball court. They also had the chance to try basic boxing training, do yoga with professional instructors to relax, or take part in circuit training to push their physical limits. Everyone found their own passion for sports.

Off-campus activities

Students visited Tianyi Pavilion, known as the "Southern Book City"—China's oldest private library. There, they listened to the cultural stories behind ancient books and architecture, immersing themselves in Ningbo's profound heritage. The hands-on experiences were equally wonderful: making fans, creating fridge magnets from coffee grounds, and weaving and decorating bags. Through these creative endeavors, they felt the essence of culture with their own hands.

Conclusion

With the closing ceremony coming to the end, the summer school came to a successful conclusion, leaving a precious mark on the growth journey of students from around the world. In the Academic English courses, thinking patterns from diverse cultural backgrounds collided fiercely, honing critical thinking skills in depth. In the content module courses, students explored cutting-edge academic fields together, with multiple perspectives interweaving into sparks of wisdom. The liberal arts master classes broke down barriers between disciplines and nations, bringing cross-disciplinary inspiration. In the all-English environment, students from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, as well as international students, communicated frequently, effectively enhancing their cross-cultural communication abilities.

The students set off on new journeys, filled with gains. on the international stage of UNNC Summer School, they transcended geographical boundaries, explored a vast academic space, and achieved self-growth through interactions with peers from around the globe. The knowledge and abilities accumulated from this multicultural learning experience have become an important driving force for the students' future endeavors, injecting more possibilities into their development. They also made friends from different backgrounds and gained sincere friendships.

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