On January 5 and 6, 2021, 17 international doctoral students conducted the Go or No-Go evaluation, which was held online this year. The main purpose of this evaluation is to confirm whether students can successfully complete their studies within the four-year period of scholarship provided by the national scholarship committee. The evaluation involved the research topics and novelty, literature review, preliminary research results, research,time plans, etc. A total of more than 50 people, including the evaluation committee, supervisors, students, attended this evaluation.
The evaluation committee was composed of three famous professors: Prof. Orhan Altan from Istanbul University of Science and Technology, Professor Wolfgang Kainz from Vienna University and Professor Timo Balz from Wuhan University. The three professors have outstanding academic achievements and rich experience in student supervision. In the process of evaluation, the professors also put forward practical suggestions for each evaluated student. Due to the epidemic, most of the students are in their own countries, facing difficulties such as poor network, poor research atmosphere, and limited communication with supervisors. Through the evaluation, we can find all the doctoral students’ scientific research goes smoothy, especially considering the circumstances. According to the current progress, they can graduate on time.
In the cultivation of international students, LIESMARS always attaches importance to both the quality and the quantity. During the four-year study, doctoral students need to go through a series of work and evaluations, such as mid-term assessment, Go or No-Go evaluation, proposal defense, paper publication, degree dissertation review, defense, etc. Once the problems are discovered, they should be solved at once. Three professors also spoke highly of the timeliness and necessity of this evaluation. Professor Orhan Altan said: “Because of the epidemic, we are separated from each other and gathered together through online evaluation, which is very important for each student. It is undoubtedly a great encouragement and spur to continue their scientific research in the later period.” Professor Wolfgang Kainz was very pleased: “From this evaluation, I learned that almost all the students can keep online meeting or communication with their supervisors at least once a week, and the supervisors’ guidance has never been absent because of the distance. This is also an important reason why the students can face the evaluation calmly and achieve good results. Through this evaluation, students also receive feedback and suggestions from professors other than their supervisors, which is also very useful to them.” As the vice director of the International Academey of GeoInformatics (IGEO) in Wuhan University, Professor Timo Balz has been involved in the whole process from preparation to final evaluation. In his opining, the Go or No-Go evaluation is of great significance to ensure the cultivation quality of international students and improve the guidance level of supervisors. We are quite pleased to see all the doctoral students go smoothy in their research.
It is reported that students who fail in this evaluation will be assessed for the second time in three months. The results of the second evaluation will affect the annual evaluation results of the National Scholarship Committee of the people’s Republic of China, which is related to whether students can get the scholarship funding for the next academic year.
