Professor Neil Quigley, president of the University of Waikato in New Zealand visited and signed a memorandum of cooperation and a student exchange agreement for the two universities from September 24th to 26th, 2018. Vice-president Feng Xinglei, Dean of College of Science, Liu Wenhua, and deputy director of the International Exchange and Cooperation Office Zeng Rui received the guests in the Academic House, and communicated with each other in terms of cooperation, teachers and students exchange projects for the two universities. Yi Chuanping, director of president office of Guangdong Technion Israel Institute of Technology, and Yang Hongqing, director of Student Affairs Office, attended the meeting.

During the meeting, Vice-president Feng Xinglei welcomed the guests’ visit and introduced the development of Shantou University. When it came to the internationalization of the university, Shantou University's international level continued to improve and receive international recognition, Feng said, adding that Shantou University has ranked among the Thames Higher Education World University Rankings, QS World University Star Ratings, and other major international universities rankings in recent years. He hoped that the two universities could continue to deepen mutual understanding, promote both friendship and enhance cooperation in the future. Neil Quigley briefly introduced of the development and characteristics of the University of Waikato, and its cooperation with Chinese universities, adding that he would continue to discuss the cooperation in detail, including research cooperation, teachers exchange projects, and other projects, with Shantou University and Guangdong Technion Israel Institute of Technology.

Established in 1964, The University of Waikato in New Zealand is one of the 8 public universities funded by the New Zealand Government. It is renowned for its law, management, computer, natural science and education, and its College of Management is one of the elite management colleges in the world, accreted by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), the European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS), and the Association of Master of Business Administration (AMBA). The university was certified as "QS Five Star University" in 2016 and ranked among the top 1% in the 2018 QS World University Rankings in the world.