ZJE Institute

Established in 2016, the ZJE Institute (Zhejiang University - University of Edinburgh Institute) is the University's flagship overseas institution for education and scientific research.

Based at the international campus of Zhejiang University in Haining, Zhejiang Province, China. A £1 billion investment providing purpose-built, state-of-the-art research, teaching and accommodation and recreation facilities.

ZJE Institute is a collaboration in the field of Biomedical Sciences.

When building the campus, the Zhejiang team travelled around the best universities of the world, identifying the best of what they had observed and embedding it back in the new International Campus.

Professors Mike ShipstonDean of Biomedical Sciences

Impact of our partnership

The ZJE Institute partnership has brought together over 80 active research academic staff to deliver research-led teaching and foster collaboration across the major biomedical research themes, including Regenerative Medicine & Stem Cells.

Our partnership has grown rapidly year on year - from 30 students enrolled in 2016 to 670 across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in the 2022-23 academic year, together with outstanding performances: in 2021, 25% of undergraduate students gained first-class degrees from Edinburgh; 66% of those students entered one of the Global top 20 universities for further studies. In the coming years, the enrolment is expected to rise to approximately 900 students.

The ZJE Institute partnership facilitates an ambitious global biomedical research agenda between two well-matched world-leading universities. The partners share a vision and have exceptional synergy to develop the next generation of biomedical scientists and support biomedical innovation.

The annual value of the partnership is currently approximately £3 million and this is increasing with new income from Edinburgh only postgraduate programmes. This joint partnership continues to grow with its dually awarded and Edinburgh only programmes, as well as recruitment of academic and professional services staff.

The ZJE Institue has extended the licence a further 10 years to 2032 due to the immense impact and innovation in approach.

Education is uniquely developed and delivered by staff from Zhejiang University, from staff here in Edinburgh, and importantly, by ZJE Institute academic staff, building sustainability into the model and strengthening the partnership. This allows for real innovation, and opportunity for collaboration with other international partners on site.

Professors Mike ShipstonDean of Biomedical Sciences

Key activities

Our partnership is underpinned by a foundation of innovative and bespoke dual-award undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Biomedical Sciences and Biomedical informatics.

Our research-led teaching award portfolio has grown rapidly, employing a model that supports exceptionally high quality and standards.

Our first dual-award BSc Integrative Biomedical Science, established in 2016, emerged from a trusted partnership and recognised as one of the first world-class undergraduate programmes in China.

Our dual-award PhD programme started in 2018, was awarded by the China Scholarship Council supporting ZJE Institute student exchanges in Edinburgh.

As one of the few Joint Institutes in China's Ministry of Education approves to provide across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, ZJE Institute has a unique market position where our research-led partnership is sustainable in terms of income generation.

Research projects

Overview of research projects from the Institute

See ZJE Institute's Research projects

Studying at the ZJE Institute

About our BSc Integrative Biomedical Sciences and BSc Biomedical Informatics programmes, based on Zhejiang University’s international campus.

Undergraduate programmes

Information about our Dual PhD Integrative Biomedical Sciences programme, based on Zhejiang University’s international campus.

Postgraduate programmes

Background of our partnership

The first collaboration between our two universities happened in 1881, when David Duncan Main from the University of Edinburgh went to Hangzhou. He became the head of Guangji Hospital, the predecessor of the second affiliated hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine.

More than 130 years later, Edinburgh and Zhejiang University joined hands again.

The future of our partnership

As both universities actively engage in a mutually beneficial collaboration in research and education, utilising it as a means to foster joint activities and establish connections between education, research, translation, and commercialisation, the prospects appear exceedingly promising for the ZJE Institute. This bodes well for the future relationship between Scotland and China.

When the people we have in Edinburgh go out to teach, now that the institute is there, they are able to develop projects in China and build new collaborations. It’s been a huge gain for us so far.

Professors Mike ShipstonDean of Biomedical Sciences