On 16 December, 2015, the Chinese for Academic Purposes (CAP) 'Potential, Challenges and Future Development' Conference was successfully held at LSE by the LSE Language centre. The conference was the first occasion when an LSE conference in a China related area has received support from the Confucius Institute Headquarters, Hanban, “New China Studies Programme”. This support was facilitate by the LSE Confucius Institute for Business London, CIBL.
CAP, Chinese for Academic Purposes, is a relatively new field which has becoming popular for university academics and PhD students whose research has a China focus. Engaging and helping international academics or PhD students to learn Chinese for their research has significant positive impact on knowledge exchange, research excellence and cultural awareness.
This landmark day conference was opened by a speech from Prof. Paul Kelly, LSE Pro. Director, and the 50 attendees where then able to explore the potential, challenges and methodology issues in designing and delivering such courses with a global perspective. The event was praised highly by all those that attended and is an excellent example the way multiple institutions, the LSE Language Centre, CIBL, Hanban and LSE, can work collaboratively.