Yao Class was founded by Prof. Andrew Chi-Chih Yao, world-leading computer scientist in 2005 with a view to nurture promising undergraduate students in the field of computer science, who are to become top talents like students from MIT, Stanford and other prestigious universities. Yao Class has set up a model for cultivating innovative talents in accordance with their aptitude and developed an extensive international teaching program. With the great effort of Prof. Yao, Yao Class model and achievements have won full support from high-ranking officials of the Chinese government and the Ministry of Education. It has been a successful example in China’s endeavor to cultivate innovative talents. Yao Class students are now making remarkable achievements in the field of computer science.
Yao Class
Chair Professor: Prof. Andrew Chi-Chih Yao
Goal: to cultivate top innovative talents in computer science
Top Undergraduate Students and Best Undergraduate Program
About 30 students are enrolled each year, most of whom are participants of the Mathematical, physical and Information Olympic gold medals or top freshmen in Tsinghua University.
An international faculty team headed by Prof. Yao has been set up.
Courses Prepared and Taught by Prof. Yao
The teaching program adopts advanced teaching methods from MIT, Stanford and Princeton.
Core courses, all delivered in English have been prepared with focus on fundamentals of computer sciences. Among them, 6 courses are taught by Prof. Yao.
Multidimensional Academic Exchange Platform
Joint program with MIT: each year, four top Yao Class students will join the student exchange program at MIT for one semester.
Joint program with UMichigan: each year, four top Yao Class students will join the student exchange program at Michigan for one semester.
Joint program with Aarhus: each year, two top Yao Class students will join the student exchange program at Aarhus for one semester.
Joint program with Waterloo: each year, two top Yao Class students will join the student exchange program at Waterloo for one semester.
Advanced international talent cultivation model: each year, top students will go to Upenn, Princeton, MIT and other prestigious universities for academic exchange; all junior students will go to Hong Kong for Winter School; students are funded to participate in top international academic conferences; and pre-graduate students will have the opportunity to go to world-class universities in Europe, America, Australia and Japan for short-term visit.
Pre-graduate Program
The most potential and promising students will join a pre-graduate class for individual cultivation.
Pre-graduate students will take part in Institute research projects with individual supervision.
Top pre-graduate students will be recommended to join IIIS graduate students.
Senior Students’ Research Activities at Renowned Scientific Research Institutes
Senior students conduct research activities at such renowned scientific research institutes as Princeton, MIT, Upenn, the University of Hong Kong, Tsinghua University, MSRA, Google and IBM for a whole year.
Teaching has been successfully combined with practices for students, who have published papers on top academic conferences and journals such as FOCS、STOC、SODA、NIPS、COLT、
Yao Class has created a dynamic academic environment for top undergraduate students. Its distinctive talent cultivation model has been highly acknowledged and strongly supported. Most of Yao Class students pursue further studies upon graduation. Yao Class welcomes aspiring young students who are interested in computer science to join the program.
Training objective: To cultivate leading international top-notch innovative computer science talents
Founded in 2005 by Academician Yao Qizhi, a world-renowned computer scientist and the winner of the Turing Award in 2000, it leads a powerful international teaching team
With years of teaching experience at MIT, Stanford and Princeton in the United States, Academician Yao Qizhi personally formulates training programs and teaching plans. He meticulously designs professional courses taught entirely in English, covering the cutting-edge fields of computer science, artificial intelligence and quantum information
We carry out a step-by-step training program that emphasizes a solid foundation and broad interdisciplinary studies, with three specialized training directions: Computer Science and Technology, Artificial Intelligence, and Quantum Information
The training model that combines "teaching students in accordance with their aptitudes" with "in-depth and meticulous cultivation" tailors a "pre-research plan"
A multi-faceted high-end international academic exchange and practice platform: All students go to renowned overseas universities for exchange and study during their undergraduate years
Throughout the senior year, I carried out scientific research practices in renowned universities and research institutions to enhance my professional level
International evaluation: Yao Class has the most outstanding undergraduate students and the most outstanding undergraduate education
In order to recognize and reward the outstanding performance of the "Yao Class" students in all aspects such as morality, intelligence, physical fitness, aesthetics and labor, especially their excellent achievements and remarkable results in study and scientific research, our college has specially established the "Yao Award". This award is presented at the end of each academic year to outstanding students in the third grade of "Yao Class". Based on the students' academic performance and other academic and activity performances, a total of 1-2 first prizes, 2-3 second prizes, 3-5 third prizes, and several merit prizes are set up.