Tsinghua-PoliTO sets standards for deep academic, interdisciplinary and multicultural research
From Torino in 2006 to Beijing in 2008 and now 2022, these two Olympic cities have proven that experience is the best teacher. With the collaboration of an innovative partnership between Chinese and Italian universities, Olympic planners have embarked on a breathtaking example of architectural recycling to turn an old Olympic venue into a magnificent new facility.
The long-term collaboration between Tsinghua University and the Polytechnic University of Turin turned into an Olympic partnership that transformed a 2008 facility into the 2022 Shougang Spectator Centre.
The project was completed with the help of a joint Ph.D. curriculum in architecture launched in 2018 focusing on academic research in Architecture, Urban Planning, Landscape Architecture, and the History of Architecture.
The decision to collaborate was an easy one. “Italy, like China, has quite a long history. China is the eastern terminal of the Silk Road, while Italy is an important node on the western terminal of the Silk Road,” said Liu Jian, Associate Dean of School of Architecture at Tsinghua University.
The rich histories and long-term partnerships between the two countries were all factors to foster the alliance. Relations between the two schools have strengthened over the past 13 years. According to Liu, the two partners set up the collaboration by running a joint design studio in 2008, when Beijing hosted the Olympic Games and established a double-degree master's program in 2014.
However, this existing master’s degree program only promises a relatively short duration and limited learning time. Therefore, Tsinghua-PoliTO Ph.D. program was created to serve architecture students who wanted to conduct an intensive and longer study.
“The training part of the Ph.D. program is longer than previous exchange programs,” Huang Yetong, a Ph.D. student at PoliTO and Tsinghua said, “The requirements are also higher, and the depth of training is deeper.”
The Olympics, continuing to unite the two partners, has witnessed the achievements of this collaborated training. The program’s teachers and students have contributed their collective understanding and expertise to the snow sloping in the Shougang area and Chongli for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.
“The strong technical characteristics of Polytechnic University also work well for Architecture in Tsinghua University,” said Liu.
Further connecting the architectural civilizations of China and Italy, the program is looking to a new round of global technological cooperation in innovation, defined through its interdisciplinary, in-depth research and a dual-mentor system.
Advance to deep academic research
Academic research was the primary purpose of establishing this joint Ph.D. program. Since PoliTO and Tsinghua first have founded collaboration in 2013, both have explored working more closely together.
The existing master’s degree program was limited to student learning rather than research. Therefore, this Ph.D. program served an opportunity for those who wanted to conduct in-depth research. The doctoral students in this program do not work alone but work very closely with professors from both China and Italy as a small research group.
“This will be like a small research team, both sides contribute to the research, and therefore, both sides benefit from this research,” said Liu.
Italy, the birthplace of the Renaissance, is well-known for its unique contributions to global architecture. PoliTO’s emphasis on its country’s rich architectural history makes it the world’s top school for architectural research, making the partnership beneficial to both universities and countries.
Students from both schools will complete their coursework at their home universities and then exchange to focus on research projects at the host university. The hottest research topic is the Olympic Games, and both partners contributed their understanding and expertise in this field. The mentors also contributed to the practical needs of the Beijing Winter Olympics. “They are the project leaders. The Chinese tutor, academician Zhuang Weimin, is the project leader of The Chongli National Biathlon Center,” Huang Yetong, the doctoral student in this program, said, “The Italian tutor, Professor Michele Bonino, is the project leader of the North Main plant of Shougang Oxygen Plant.”
Another feature of this program is its multidisciplinary nature. The joint Ph.D. program involves several disciplines such as architecture, planning, and landscape architecture. In addition to individual supervisors, both Tsinghua and PoliTO have formed an interdisciplinary subcommittee consisting of a professor of architecture, a planning professor, and a landscape architecture professor. Each student will have six professors to help with their research.
Giorgia Cestaro, a Ph.D. student from Italy, said that PoliTO manages the “China Room” research team. Once Tsinghua University’s candidates come to PoliTO, they are all involved in this team. It is composed of Ph.D. candidates, researchers, and scholars from all over the world, including China and Italy. The China Room is a common space for research on contemporary processes of Chinese urbanization.
“It mainly covers Chinese architecture and cultural heritages, enabling students to widen their views,” she said.
This year the two schools worked together on an exhibition called “China Goes Urban, The City to Come,” resulting from a long research collaboration. One of the research projects is called “New Town in China.” It involved fieldwork in four new towns in China: Tongzhou, Beijing, Lanzhou New City, Zhengdongxinqu, and Zhaoqingxincheng. It was held at the Museo d’Arte Oriente in Turin and reaped wide praise.
THU and PoliTO’s education: Gives ways to students being a competitive talent
Huang also mentioned that the rewarding achievement of this program was interdisciplinary course selection. In addition, most research and courses she joined allowed her to finish twice the credits needed for the doctoral program.
Globalized and interdisciplinary education is the “key point” of this program. Since various students participate in every course, they can capture the opportunity to engage in a globalized network and be familiar with global dialogue.
“Since we live in a society where cultural sensitivity is one of the essential skills, launching this joint program helps students understand the world and navigate their lives,” Cestaro said.
Cestaro focused on the history of arts and conservation of cultural heritage in her bachelor’s and master’s studies. She said at first she was worried about landing in the architecture field because she hadn’t studied architecture before. But both schools let students tailor the curriculum for themselves. Therefore, while taking advantage of her background, she could optimize the curriculum in better ways to learn new studies.
“Being in the program gives you more opportunities to choose the comfortable path to develop your career because you can select the courses and put them in your curriculum for both THU and PoliTO,” Cestaro said.
Double Mentoring, Double opportunities for students
Each student is co-supervised by two supervisors, one from each university for this program. As a result, it is a shining point attracting students to attend this program because of its benefits.
“I have had two mentors since I joined this program,” said Huang, “The guidance I received from these two professors is one of the most rewarding aspects of my participation in this project.”
Huang said her foreign supervisor took the initiative to help her contact architects, other project professionals, and even government professionals to provide her with opportunities to research projects. Meanwhile, she also appreciates the assistance given by her Chinese supervisor, especially at the beginning of the graduation project.
There is a solid international faculty team at both PoliTO and Tsinghua University.
“There is a trans-disciplinary committee at our school, which helps the students from Tsinghua who join the program and go to PoliTO for exchange,” said Liu, “The same organization also exists at PoliTO.”
Tsinghua has also benefitted from the PoliTO tradition, where each Ph.D. student has at least three professors helping them. Traditionally, each Tsinghua student will have only one supervisor. Still, for this program, Tsinghua now also organizes a small group of faculty members for each student, who function as a small committee just like that at PoliTO.
Since the program is interdisciplinary, the committee’s composition depends on the student’s thesis, which can be changed by inviting professors from another relevant department.
“The flexibility between the two distinguished universities, Tsinghua and PoliTO, represents an extra value of the joint Ph.D. which will have long-lasting results in building up an academic community of scholars capable of navigating and cooperating in globalized research perspectives,” Cestaro believes.
“Different cultures, different supervisors, and different teaching modes at two universities really open more possibilities for the young generation, not only for their professional career but also for the possibilities of more international exchange and communications,” Liu notes.
The program, students say, has shown how international teamwork and students’ enthusiasm can yield exceptional results.
“The program is like making wine. You have many grapes and then squeeze them and get the juice,” added Cestaro, “The juice is the best part, and it symbolizes the best of both universities.”
