The concept of, “Advanced Undergraduate Education”, is truly inspirational. Shantou University conducts its operations based on the primary principle of cultivating talents conforming to its tenet, “Aspiration, Knowledge, Perseverance, Achievement”. Guiding its activities with this concept, Shantou University adheres to its mission of student-oriented education and maintains its chief educational feature of international and refined management.

The talent-training mode of the undergraduate section is innovative and the system of promoting comprehensive talents is established to develop its students’ knowledge, qualities, accomplishments, will and spirit. STU provides a unique learning experience to the students, to make sure that each one of them is equipped with not only good professional qualities but also the capability to surmount all boundaries while doing their majors and apply theory to practice. All these techniques aim at making students into learners for life, who would possess practical abilities to adapt to society’s progress.

In recent years, Shantou University has conducted a series of profound pedagogical reforms in many spheres of its operations. It includes cultivating students’ critical thinking skills, establishing training modes of adaptability, providing the students with an integrated learning experience and founding a safeguard mechanism to maintain the quality of education. As a result of these measures and efforts, Shantou University is ranked by Guangdong Province as the experimental zone of autonomous operations for comprehensive higher educational reforms.

Cultivation of a Critical Thinking Ability: Since 2011, STU has launched a new compulsory course for all undergraduates, namely “The Basis of Critical Thinking”. In addition, other courses have been designed to steadily cultivate students’ critical thinking skills. These measures are initiated in order to feature critical thinking as one of the usual thinking characteristics of an STU student.

The Training Mode of Adaptability: In 2010, Shantou University revised the learning program on the lines of more adaptability. The curriculum system of each discipline was rearranged and optimized. New reforms have been applied to organize courses, such as the learning module and the series of courses. This reform enables the curriculum structure to adapt to requirements of the society. The contents of the courses are designed to work towards the development of discipline and are reinforced with the training mode to adjust to a student’s growth. Furthermore, in response to the demands of students’ individualized development, STU has designed the interdisciplinary curriculum and the professional training system to enhance the freedom and flexibility of the learning process of students.

The Integrated Learning Experience: In 2009, after relevant research, Shantou University confirmed its targeted systems comprising talent training, around which the various segments of STU’s education are carried out. Different educational goals were attached to each course and each activity, in order to realize STU’s objectives, namely the combination of general education and professional education; of learning inside and outside the classrooms as well as of the knowledge of diverse disciplines and skills. In other words, Shantou University comprehensively cultivates the intellects of the undergraduates inside and outside the classrooms, in the residential college as well as through diversified cultural activities on and off-campus.

The Safeguard Mechanism of the Education Quality: Guided by the principles of quality assurance and continuous improvement, Shantou University grasps the overall objectives of talent training. In addition, at STU they follow up on feedbacks on the affects of the training, followed through with further adjustments and related measures. By setting up professional standards, course portfolios, and quality reports of talent training of the undergraduate section, Shantou University has managed to establish the safeguard mechanism encompassing the quality of education. This is based on self-supervision, continuous improvement and scientific development.