Chinese, German auto heartlands deepen educational ties with new college

HEFEI, April 16 (Xinhua) -- A partnership between Hefei University in Anhui, one of China's major auto manufacturing provinces, and Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences in Germany's automotive heartland of Lower Saxony, has led to the founding of the International College of Hefei University on Wednesday.

The new college plans to enroll its first batch of students in 2026, offering three undergraduate programs focused on new energy vehicles (NEVs), next-generation information technology, and intelligent logistics.

Hefei University already hosts eight industry-focused schools established in cooperation with German corporations, including the "Volkswagen College" and the "Continental College." Its partnership with Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences spans over 41 years, covering fields such as mechanical engineering and electronic information engineering.

The state of Lower Saxony is home to Volkswagen's headquarters. Anhui, meanwhile, has emerged as a rising powerhouse in China's NEV sector. In 2025, Anhui led all Chinese provinces in both automobile and NEV production for the first time, and its complete-vehicle exports surpassed 1 million units.

In recent years, German multinationals such as Volkswagen and Continental have significantly increased investment in Anhui. Volkswagen has so far invested over 3.5 billion euros (about 4.13 billion U.S. dollars) in Hefei, where its largest R&D center outside Germany now employs around 3,000 people.

Also on Wednesday, the Anhui provincial government, the state government of Lower Saxony, and the Volkswagen Group jointly signed a letter of intent to strengthen automotive cooperation, deepening collaboration on R&D and innovation, automated and connected driving, and battery technologies.

Olaf Lies, Minister President of Lower Saxony, said he was deeply impressed by the robust momentum of Anhui's high-quality development and is optimistic about future cooperation.

The move reflects a broader trend of Sino-German cooperation. A survey conducted by the German Association of the Automotive Industry in 2025 found that nearly 70 percent of respondent firms planned to increase investment in China, with over 78 percent focusing on R&D.