The Meaning of Internationalisation

In recent years, Macao Polytechnic University has made remarkable strides in global rankings, underscoring its growing influence and competitiveness on the world stage. In the THE University Impact Rankings 2025, MPU ranks 301-400, making it the highest-ranked university in Macao and affirming its strong social impact and international standing. This year also marks MPU’s debut in the QS World University Rankings, where it placed in the 901-950 band globally. In the QS Asia University Rankings 2026, MPU climbed to 402, a leap of 50 places from last year. Since first appearing on this list, the University has demonstrated consistent, significant progress, emerging as a rising force in international higher education.

Professor Im Sio Kei, Rector of MPU, emphasised, “True internationalisation goes beyond metrics and rankings. It embodies a deeper education mission: integrating global perspectives, cross-cultural thinking, and international resources into teaching, research, community services, and talent development. In today’s rapidly evolving higher education landscape, MPU embraces openness, progress, and connectivity, ensuring that every academic achievement and every member of our community serves as a bridge between Macao and the world. This philosophy allows the University’s unique identity and mission to be recognised and create value in the global arena.”

Cultural DNA x International Research Strategy

Macao has long been a meeting point of East and West, with deep linguistic and historical ties to Lusophone countries. Building on this heritage, MPU draws on its Sino-Lusophone cultural “DNA”, using its century-long experiences in Portuguese-language education as a gateway to internationalisation. This strong foundation enables the integration of language, culture, and technology. In recent years, MPU has combined expertise in linguistics, artificial intelligence, and corpus development to create the world’s most advanced Chinese-Portuguese neural network machine translation platform and multilingual speech recognition systems, now widely applied in teaching, translation services, and global collaboration .

Artificial intelligence is at the forefront of global innovation. Beyond machine translation, MPU’s “AI+” research strategy focuses on cutting-edge intelligent technologies and their integration with key domains such as healthcare and wellness, sports sciences, environmental protection, and tourism management. This approach drives interdisciplinary breakthroughs and foster high-impact research platforms in collaboration with leading institutions worldwide, such as:

• Joint Laboratory for AI-Empowered Smart Healthy Ageing, established with Peking University Health Science Center;
• Engineering Research and Development Joint Laboratory of Intelligent Systems, established with Beihang University;
• Joint Research Laboratory in Advanced Technologies for Smart Cities, and Joint Laboratory for AI and Healthy Longevity, established with the University of Coimbra;
• Joint Research Laboratory for Cognition, Language and Neuroscience, established with the Catholic University of Portugal; and
• Joint Research Centre in Ubiquitous Computing, established with the University of California Los Angeles.

Through these international platforms, MPU brings together top scientists to form collaborative research teams, advance interdisciplinary innovation, and accelerate the translation of scientific outputs, strengthening Macao’s global competitiveness in science and technology.

 

Collaborative Innovation for Global Impact

 “MPU’s AI-driven research strategy profoundly shapes how we cultivate technological literacy among students,” Rector Im Sio Kei notes. “Faculty members engage students in hands-on applications within teaching and research, fostering a global mindset and creating an expanding higher education ecosystem with international influence.” A prime example is Canarin, an award-winning environmental technology developed and continuously enhanced by generations of faculty and students at the Faculty of Applied Sciences. This patented international research project features a cloud-based real-time environmental monitoring system powered by AI and big data, enabling intelligent tracking and collection of environmental data.

Today, Canarin is deployed at the Joanina Library of the University of Coimbra, a UNESCO World Heritage site completed in 1728, to help preserve its historic architecture and priceless collections. This project has earned global recognition, showcased at the G7 Summit and the China International Import Expo, and was shortlisted among the top eight for the Outstanding Contribution to Environmental Leadership Award at THE Awards Asia 2024. These achievements highlight MPU’s forward-looking approach to international scientific innovation and its commitment to creating real-world impact. 

 

MPU and the Catholic University of Portugal establish a joint laboratory

Agreement signed with the University of Lisbon

Agreement signed with Universidade de Brasilia to embark on all-round collaboration

Precise Connector of Sino-Lusophone Collaboration

Leveraging Macao’s role as a Sino-Lusophone platform, and the University’s strong foundation in Portuguese-language education, MPU has spent more than three decades serving as a precise connector in Sino-Lusophone higher education. Through this position, MPU has established a robust and diverse network of partnerships with Portuguese-speaking countries, carving out a distinctive advantage amid the global wave of higher education internationalisation.

Today, MPU maintains collaboration and alliances with over 70 universities and institutions across Portuguese-speaking nations, serving as Vice-President of FORGES (Portuguese-Speaking Higher Education Management Forum), on the Supervisory Board of AULP (Association of Universities of Portuguese Language), and as member of CCISP (Portuguese Polytechnics Coordinating Council). These platforms enable MPU to co-host academic exchanges and share best practices, such as its long-standing collaboration with FORGES and its 2023 invitation to join the Sustainable Development Network for Higher Education in Portuguese-Speaking Countries, advancing Sino-Lusophone sustainability initiatives.

Building on these partnerships, MPU has launched a wide range of collaborative projects, including dual degree programmes, faculty and student exchanges, and joint research laboratories. Some initiatives forge tripartite collaborations that link with Chinese universities, examples being MPU’s partnership with Peking University Health Science Center and the University of Coimbra on traditional Chinese medicine research and academic translation, and the tri-regional student exchange programme with Beijing Language and Culture University and the Polytechnic Institute of Leiria. In recent years, MPU has further strengthened ties with leading institutions such as the University of Lisbon, the Catholic University of Portugal, São Paulo State University, and University of Brasília, expanding opportunities for academic mobility and collaboration. 

MPU signs Cooperation Agreement with Universidade Estadual Paulista

 

A New Ecosystem for Global Higher Education

For Rector Im, the proudest moments in advancing internationalisation are when faculty and students shine on the global stage. “Every time I see our students leveraging MPU’s platforms to step from Macao into the world, collaborating with top international research teams, publishing in leading journals, presenting at global conferences, winning championships in international competitions, or pursuing further studies at world-renowned universities, it strengthens my resolve to drive internationalisation forward.”

Rector Im leads by example, encouraging faculty and students to seize every opportunity to showcase MPU’s academic strengths. As one of the founding members of the World Digital Education Alliance, MPU has played an active role in shaping international standards. For two consecutive years, Rector Im represented the University at the World Digital Education Conference, where he participated in key alliance standards, including the “Framework for International Digital Education Standards” and the “Reference Architecture for Educational Large Models”.

In recent years, he has also been invited to speak at major global forums such as the THE Digital Universities Asia Summit and THE Global AI Forum, participating in leadership dialogues on higher education. At these events, he shared insights on topics ranging from digital transformation and sustainable development through green technologies to emerging trends in interdisciplinary education. His vision emphasises cross-disciplinary and cross-regional collaboration as a way to harness academic strengths and co-create a new global ecosystem for higher education.

MPU signs Cooperation Agreement with the National University of East Timor

MPU attends the 34^th AULP annual meeting hosted by Zambeze University in Mozambique

 

Forging the Global Campus

The Macao SAR Government’s latest policy report has designated the development of the Macao-Hengqin International Education Town as a key strategic project, creating significant opportunities for higher education in Macao. In response, MPU is actively developing its new campus in the Hengqin Cooperation Zone. The first phase focuses on building a joint base with Portuguese universities, which will then extend to other eight Portuguese-speaking countries, forming a multilateral cooperation mechanism. This initiative aims to introduce high-quality international education resources while attracting global talent to MPU, contributing to shaping a dynamic global campus.

Building on this foundation, MPU is strategically investing in areas such as language technology, artificial intelligence, healthcare, and Portuguese-language education, using technology as a driver for emerging disciplines. Its educational model encompasses four dimensions: optimising academic programmes, cultivating next-generation talent, enhancing innovation capacity, and integrating industry-academia-research applications. These efforts align with the vision of the international education town and will gradually expand the successful Sino-Lusophone collaboration model to a global scale, elevating MPU’s distinctive approach to internationalisation.

Ambassador of Cape Verde to China visits MPU

Ambassador of Angola to China visits MPU