On the morning of January 6, Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin attended the "China-Ireland Transnational Education Promotion Event" during his visit to China. He witnessed Yang Yi, Vice President of Communication University of China, and Ursula Kilkelly, Vice President of University College Cork, jointly sign a cooperation agreement to promote cooperation between the two universities in digital economy programs.
This signing comes at a crucial moment as bilateral relations between China and Ireland continue to deepen, marking a solid step forward for Communication University of China and University College Cork in the field of China-foreign cooperative education. It also represents a concrete outcome of both sides implementing the agreement between our two presidents and promoting strategic alignment.
In July 2019, Liao Xiangzhong, then Secretary of the Party Committee and President of Communication University of China, led a delegation to visit University College Cork in Ireland. He met with Professor Patrick O'Shea, President of the university, and signed an inter-university cooperation agreement, officially initiating collaboration between the two institutions. Subsequently, both sides continued to expand cooperation in student exchanges and the joint establishment of academic workshops. In 2025, the undergraduate program in "Digital Economy" jointly applied for by the two universities as a Chinese-foreign cooperative education project received approval from the Ministry of Education.
University College Cork (UCC), founded in 1845, is located in Cork, Ireland's second-largest city, and is one of the oldest universities in Ireland. UCC currently has over 26,000 students, with more than 20% coming from 140 countries and regions worldwide. In 2026, the university was ranked 246th in the QS World University Rankings.
This article was translated with AI assistance.
Editor: Fang Yiran
