(Yicai) Oct. 20 -- Multiple Chinese universities have established technology and business schools this year, aiming to cultivate interdisciplinary talent to strengthen the transformation of science and technology achievements into market applications.

More than 10 Chinese colleges have set up tech and business schools this year, according to statistics compiled by higher education data and content service provider Cingta. Dongbei University of Finance and Economics inaugurated its School of Technology and Business on Oct. 14, making it the first public university in Northeast China to do so, while South China University of Technology inaugurated its relevant school on Oct. 8.

The University of Science and Technology of China established the country’s first technology and business school in October 2022, followed by Sichuan University, Hohai University, and Suzhou University last year.

Traditional business schools focus on cultivating general management talent, while engineering schools focus more on solving specific tech problems, said Li Yang, chief representative of industrial research at Qingdao Engineering Consulting Institute. However, tech and business schools can make up for the shortcomings of their respective curricula and cultivate interdisciplinary sci-tech industry talent that understands “technology, industry, capital, market, and management,” Li added.

The development of emerging industries has led to growing demand for high-level interdisciplinary talents, noted Ding Changfa, an associate professor at Xiamen University’s economics department. Colleges’ tech and business schools can cultivate more interdisciplinary and innovative talent aligned with economic and social development, Ding pointed out.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev