On September 7, 2024, the National Symposium on the Construction of Intellectual Property (IP) Master’s Degree Program was successfully held at Tongji University. The event was organized by the National Steering Committee for Graduate Education in Professional Degrees of Intellectual Property (hereinafter referred to as the Steering Committee) and hosted by the Shanghai International College of Intellectual Property at Tongji University.

Participants included the Deputy Chair of the Steering Committee, members from various universities, relevant officials from the Human Resources Department of the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, and the Shanghai Intellectual Property Administration, as well as key representatives from newly authorized IP master’s degree programs and members of the Secretariat Working Group of the Steering Committee.

Attendees shared insights on the objectives, strategies, and priorities for IP master’s degree education, offering valuable suggestions for advancing high-quality development in this field at a new starting point.

The opening ceremony of the symposium was chaired by Yu Xinmiao, Vice Dean (acting) of the Shanghai International College of Intellectual Property at Tongji University.

The symposium’s discussions were divided into two segments: Guiding Documents and Future Development Plans.The “Guiding Documents” session was moderated by Mao Hao, Secretary-General of the Steering Committee and Professor at Tongji University. Steering Committee members, including Professor Yi Jiming from Peking University, Professor Huang Yuye from Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, and Professor Tang Heng from Jiangsu University, presented and interpreted key documents on core courses, basic requirements for theses, and guiding training programs.

Following these presentations, representatives engaged in lively discussions on topics such as the implementation of training programs, execution of thesis requirements, design of core courses, development of textbooks, and examination standards. The discussions fostered a consensus on the development of the professional degree program and yielded multiple constructive suggestions.

Cao Hongying, Chief Inspector at the Human Resources Department of CNIPA, emphasized in her closing remarks that participating institutions bear a historic responsibility to establish high-quality professional degree programs in their initial stages. She called for broad societal consensus, strengthening of authorized professional degree programs, optimization of talent cultivation models, and enhancement of industry-academia integration.

She further highlighted the need to develop mechanisms for industry-academia interaction, build a dual-competency mentoring team, and accelerate the creation of high-quality teaching resources. Additionally, the Secretariat of the Steering Committee was urged to improve coordination, communication, and training for newly authorized programs, ensuring the quality of graduate education and collectively driving the high-quality development of intellectual property professional degrees.

Contributors: Li Xin, Bai Yang
Reviewed by: Yu Xinmiao