Following a four-month brainstorming campaign that combined field research at more than 60 leading enterprises and institutions with discussions across all 29 of its schools and departments, Shenzhen University has unveiled a plan to reform its undergraduate education. Drawing on the experience of over 40 top-tier domestic universities, the initiative aims to systematically restructure the entire talent cultivation process and will take effect next year.

Encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship, the plan focuses on cultivating three distinct types of talent: academic researchers, industry-oriented professionals, and cross-disciplinary experts. The university also offers flexible course selections, allowing students to pursue micro-majors, minor programs, minor degrees, and dual bachelor's degrees.

Under this framework, the university will streamline its credit system to grant students greater autonomy. Adhering to the principle of "less but better," it will reduce academic burdens by lowering the minimum credit requirement for a bachelor's degree to 150 credits for science, engineering, and teacher-training programs, and to 140 credits for other four-year programs. This frees up time and space for students to engage in research training, social practice, and interdisciplinary learning.

With a broader vision, the university will move away from fragmented and piecemeal curriculum designs by reducing the number of required courses while expanding small-class seminars and project-based learning (PBL). Meanwhile, "micro-majors" will be embedded into elective courses in modular formats, dynamically tracking the frontiers of academic research and industrial development.

The university will introduce a compulsory AI general education for all students, with differentiated requirements: STEM majors will focus on programming and the underlying technologies of AI, while humanities and arts majors will concentrate on AI tool applications. AI will also be integrated into the teaching of individual disciplines, supported by a university-wide smart teaching system.

To foster innovation and entrepreneurship, the university will offer general-education MOOCs on these topics alongside industry-specific courses tailored to different majors. Winners of science competitions and successful startup founders may substitute their projects for their graduation thesis or design projects.

The university aims to establish a complete cycle of "course learning – project incubation – competition success – commercialization," and will connect students with industry mentors, incubation spaces, and investment and financing resources.

To encourage cross-disciplinary learning, students may register for up to three elective courses from other majors per semester on a "Pass/Fail" basis, with a cumulative total of no more than 12 credits excluded from GPA calculations. Additionally, credits from core courses in other majors may substitute for up to one-third of the elective credits within a student's own major, promoting versatility and interdisciplinary exploration.

On the faculty side, the university seeks to reverse the long-standing tendency to "value research over teaching." Faculty members who win teaching competitions, guide students to success in innovation and entrepreneurship contests, or compile high-quality textbooks will receive recognition equivalent to research project achievements in promotions and performance evaluations.

Finally, the university will continuously adjust its teaching and admissions plans based on employment data, closely aligning them with national strategies and Shenzhen's industrial development priorities.