UNSW has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with civilian drones and aerial imaging technology giant DJI, to cooperate on education, training and research initiatives in engineering.
Key initiatives for the cooperation include a scholarship fund, robotics competitions, robotics summer camps and exchange programs to nurture engineering talent.
Representatives from UNSW, DJI, Austrade and the NSW Trade & Investment Office formalised the partnership at a virtual signing ceremony this week.
The MoU is between UNSW and DJI’s education arm, DJI Education, which develops programs to incorporate technology into student learning and STEAM education, specifically in the fields of engineering and robotics.
It outlines how the University and DJI will seek to work together in areas of common interest, including research, student training, scholarships and exchange programs. It also opens the prospect of UNSW’s participation in DJI’s student RoboMaster Competition, which it plans to launch in Australia in the near future.
Preparing students for the workplace
“A key priority for UNSW is to increase its engagement with leading organisations to provide students with enriched opportunities during their studies to best prepare them for the workplace,” said UNSW’s Director of Knowledge Exchange Mr Warwick Dawson.
“We also look to enhance the skills of our staff and accelerate the adoption and impact of our research," Mr Dawson said. “I am confident we’ll see many benefits from this collaboration on multiple levels.”
Head of DJI Education Jianrong Gao said he is proud to partner with the UNSW, one of Australia's leading research and teaching universities and the top engineering school in the country.
Nurturing the next generation of engineers
“By working closely with the University's faculty members and making our latest technologies accessible to students such as the RoboMaster EP series, our goal is to create an enjoyable and experiential learning environment that allows students to explore practical and innovative applications for the future,” Gao said.
“As artificial intelligence and robotics become an increasingly important part of society, this MoU solidifies our joint commitment in nurturing the next generation of engineers and roboticists and preparing them for the future of possibilities.”
Headquartered in Shenzhen, widely considered China’s Silicon Valley, DJI is a privately owned and operated company, now recognised as a world leader in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
With offices in the US, Germany, the Netherlands, Japan, South Korea, Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, DJI services consumers as well as professionals in a broad range of sectors including filmmaking, agriculture, conservation, search and rescue and energy infrastructure.
