On March 6, Dalian Maritime University (DMU) held a meeting to prepare for the new semester in the COSCO Auditorium. Party Secretary Xu Minqiang and President Shan Hongjun delivered speeches at the meeting. Attendees included university leaders, mid-level administrators, second and third-tier professors, academic discipline leaders, program directors, and section-level cadres from administrative departments.

Xu Minqiang emphasized that this year is of vital importance to the university’s development. Currently, the university is navigating the strategic opportunity to develop China into a country with transportation strength and is in a critical phase for the “Double First-Class” initiative evaluation. Additionally, as this year marks the beginning of a new employment term for the university, it is imperative to enhance internal governance capacity and the professional competences of staff and faculty to drive high-quality growth of the university. He called on the entire university to adopt a spirit of striving, a pioneering vigor, and a pragmatic approach to drive new achievements in all aspects of the university’s work. He provided updates on the progress of the university’s key initiatives during the holiday, focusing on five areas: Party building leadership, close collaboration with the industry, leveraging core strengths, talent-driven development, and internal management. He also outlined the work arrangements for the new employment term, covering three aspects: institutional restructuring, leadership transitions and appointments, and the refinement of the target responsibility system. Specific requirements were put forward in these areas. Finally, he offered three pieces of advice. First, strengthen political leadership by upholding the comprehensive leadership of the Party and advance institutional development through high-quality Party building. Second, improve capabilities in education, research, and service by focusing on the needs of students and faculty, and by stimulating the vitality and synergy of the “Double First-Class” initiative. Enhance digital intelligence capabilities by integrating artificial intelligence with education to align talent cultivation with industry demands and emerging trends. Launch the “Project of Fostering Virtue Through Education in the New Era” and refine the cultivation system for “navigator-type” talents in the new era. Focus on teachers and cadres as key groups to invigorate new momentum for development. Encourage faculty to engage deeply with industry and enterprises to identify and solve real-world problems. Pilot the Dual Expertise Program for academic leaders and adopt “zigzag career paths” for administrative cadres. Third, enhance institutional governance by adhering to a spirit of hard work and progress, and by fully accomplishing the goals and tasks of the new semester. Continuously optimize the internal governance system, use the target responsibility system as a key tool, and advance a series of reforms, including making colleges the main entities, creating talent and research platform special zones, and continuously improving governance efficiency.

Shan Hongjun extended his greetings to the faculty and staff for the new semester. He noted that the 2025 Report on the Work of the Government has made important strategic deployments in advancing education, scientific innovation, talent cultivation, and university reforms. This has further clarified the direction and provided impetus for the university’s deepening of educational reforms and improvement of educational quality. He called on the entire university to deeply understand these directives, seize the opportunities, integrate them into practice, and implement them effectively. He then shared his thoughts on the “five capabilities” and “three spirits” necessary for building a world-class maritime university. He emphasized that becoming a world-class maritime university is not only a mission entrusted by the Party Organization of the Ministry of Transport of the People’s Republic of China, but also a long-cherished aspiration of the university’s faculty, students, and alumni. First, there must be a strategic capability to stay focused on the goals, aligning with national strategies and urgent industry needs by developing a “1+N” discipline plan and implementing an action plan to enhance talent cultivation quality, thus fully serving

the building of China’s strength in education, transportation, and shipping. Second, there should be a planning capability to look ahead, such as preparing for the third round of the “Double First-Class” initiative, the “15th Five-Year Plan” and new pilot projects of building China’s strength in transportation, using future trends to guide current development. Third, there needs to be the capability to break through and achieve victory, focusing on key areas such as applying for national science and technology awards, the election of new academicians, talent team building, and the construction of organized platforms. We should overcome difficulties, push forward step by step, and strive to achieve new breakthroughs. Fourth, there should be a systematic thinking capability that involves empathy and collaboration. The special “Xinghai” faculty recruitment system and the new employment term performance metrics should be scientifically designed, forming a collective force for development. Fifth, there must be the capability to take root in the industry and explore new opportunities. We should actively integrate into the industry, expand channels for cooperation, win industry support through outstanding contributions, and shape a “new competitive edge” for the university within the industry. He stressed that while capabilities are the foundation for building a world-class maritime university, the more critical factors are the mental state and work style of the cadres and faculty. Faculty and staff should love the university as they love their own family and play the role of “the masters of the institution”, creating a positive, upright and thriving workplace culture at the university. They should also possess an “educator’s spirit” that strives for excellence, paying attention to details and becoming experts in their respective fields. Moreover, they need a “pragmatist’s spirit” that takes responsibility and acts, adhering to principles of straightforwardness, immediacy, and efficiency in their work, with everyone actively taking real actions. He called on all faculty and staff to continue their efforts and tackle challenges with the courage and determination to turn the impossible into the possible, driving the high-quality development of the university and gradually turning the blueprint for a world-class maritime university into reality.