院长牛华勇在2018北外国际商学院新生开学典礼上的讲话

撰稿：xuya   2018年09月10日   浏览 4766 次

北京外国语大学国际商学院

院长 牛华勇

尊敬的各位老师、亲爱的2018级全体同学们：

Dear teachers and fellow students,

今天是一个值得纪念的日子。2018级全体同学济济一堂，共同集会庆祝新学期的开始。我所以说值得纪念，主要是有四个原因。

Today is a day worth remembering. The students of 2018 are gathered here to celebrate the dawn of a new semester. This occasion is special for four reasons.

第一，是今年是国际商学院18年历史上，新生入学最多的一年。今年我们共有本科生438名。其中中国学生245名，外籍学生193名。硕士生86名，其中中国学生73名，外籍学生13名。教育部出国留学培训项目学生262名，共计新生786名。这些同学来自中国所有的省市自治区、香港、澳门特别行政区、台湾地区，国际学生来自全球45个国家。

First, 2018 represents the largest ever intake for IBS since our founding 18 years ago. A total of 438 undergraduates have enrolled this year, with 245 Chinese students and 193 overseas students. Our postgraduate intake is 86, with 73 Chinese and 13 overseas students. We also have 262 students under the Ministry of Education’s International Foundation Program for Business and Economic, making 786 newly enrolled students altogether. Our fellow Chinese students come from all provinces, municipalities, autonomous regions, Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions and Taiwan, while our international students represent 45 different nationalities.

第二，今年是国际商学院成立18周年的成人礼。我们热爱的国际商学院，正好走过了18个不平凡的年头。18年的发展，虽然有各种问题和困难，但一路走来，我们所遵从的价值观和学院文化表现出不可阻挡的生命力，我们所倡导的愿景正在一步步接近实现。

Second, today is IBS’s “coming of age” ceremony. Our business school has been through 18 extraordinary years. Despite twists and turns along the way, the values and philosophies we uphold have resiliently pushed us closer to our vision step by step.

第三，今年是千禧一代入读大学的一年。2001年，也就是你们在座很多人尚在襁褓中的那一年，刚到北外工作的我，迎接了我职业生涯中的第一批大一学生。他们中的大多数，出生于遥远的1983年。一转眼，千禧一代就已经坐在了我的眼前。我一方面应该感慨一下时光飞逝，同情一下自己和同事们渐染的白发。另一方面也需要庆幸老天的眷顾，可以把这样有意义的工作作为自己人生的职业——你永远都在同最有活力和朝气的人在一起，让自己经常忘记时光的存在。

Third, the first group of millennials born after 2000 are entering university this year. Back in 2001, when many of you were in your cribs, I welcomed my very first new students not long after starting my career at BFSU. Most were born in 1983, which seems like an age ago. And in the blink of an eye, I now have young millennials sitting before me. While I can’t help but wonder how time flies and feel sympathetic to both myself and my colleagues for our graying hair, I am eternally grateful that fate has brought me into a profession full of purpose. The passing of time eludes you when you’re surrounded by youth and energy.

第四，今天正巧是2018年教师节，我也借今天这个场合向全体老师致以最崇高的敬意。

Fourth, today also happens to be Teacher’s Day, and I take this opportunity to pay my utmost respects to all the academic staff present.

在过去的18年中，北外的校园经历了巨变。整个东院发生了翻天覆地的变化，同样的变化正在西院上演。我们有了现代化的体育馆和图书馆，当然也还有相当复古，亲密无间的学生宿舍楼。一批又一批的同学来到北外，经历2年到4年的奋斗、快乐、挣扎与妥协，在校园的每个角落刻画属于自己的快乐与悲伤，然后去到世界各地。

The BFSU landscape has revolutionized over the past 18 years, with both the Eastern and Western campuses taking on a fresh look. We have a state-of-the-art gymnasium and library, and vintage dormitories that foster a strong sense of community. Year after year, BFSU ushers in students who will devote the next 2 to 4 years of their academic career on our campus. They will relish in a journey of joy, struggle, perseverance and compromise, before taking off to all corners of the world.

这是我必须要在开学时候强调的一件事情，我们来到大学，怀揣着各式各样的梦想，但所有的梦想，都需要用一种合理的方式，与现实之间搭建一个坚实的桥梁。国商是这样一个地方，我们鼓励梦想，但同时强调梦想需要有适合的土壤才能够落地生根。

However, I must reiterate on this precious occasion that any dreams you bring with you into these campus gates must be reconciled with reality by way of reason and pragmatism. IBS is just the right place for this – we encourage you to dream big, but we also know that every dream needs the right mix of conditions to come true.

北外国际商学院所追求的，是一种跨越时代、国别与种族的价值观。我们的愿景，是成为一所连接中国与世界商业文明的全球化商学院。这就要求我们的老师和同学，能够始终站在更高的位置，理性地审视世界和中国正在发生的一切。我们首先要努力地理解，然后才能认真地发现，最后才是有可能的一个解决方案。有了真问题，才有真学问。

BFSU IBS aspires to values that transcend time, race and nationality. Our vision is to forge a truly globalized business school that links Chinese entrepreneurialism with that of the world’s. This requires our teaching and student body to examine both Chinese and global affairs through a more macro vision. To arrive at the answers we seek, we must first learn and discover. Only through meaningful questions can we realize academic distinction.

人格独立、思想自由、兼容并蓄、博学笃行。这绝对不会是一个一帆风顺的旅程，因为思考和痛苦是并生的姐妹。你会发现有很多事情你难以认知、无法判断。很遗憾，我没有办法给你们答案，就像我自己也还没有找到所有问题的答案一样。但大学给你提供的是这样一个平台，你可以在这个平台上思考、辩论、实践和创造。答案都是需要自己去寻找，四年太短，我们需要毕生的探索。

We must learn with an open mind to serve a great cause. To this end, we need to possess an independent character and a liberal attitude. The journey ahead will not be a breeze, for learning and pain often go hand in hand. There may be things that you have trouble coming to terms with. Regrettably, we can’t give you the answers to everything, just like how I still have many unanswered questions in my head. However, university education can offer a platform for you to think, debate, create and apply your knowledge. You must go look for your own answers, not just in the next four years, but over the long course of your lives.

在我看来，所谓的一流大学，最重要的，不仅仅是知识的创造与传播，更是把每一个经过她面前的人，都变成一个思考的主体，点燃创造的激情，去寻找未知、追求真理。

A world-class university, I believe, should not only be about developing and disseminating knowledge – it should turn every one of its students into a thinker, instill in them a desire to create, and motivate them to seek both the truth and the unknown. 

要实现这一个目标，今天的我们，面临着比以往更多的挑战。

A goal like this requires us to face tougher challenges than ever before.

从学生的角度说，千禧一代是互联网原住民。得益于互联网的普及，相比以往的同学，有着更加丰富的知识和广博的见识。但我也不得不说，互联网知识的碎片化，丰富而不系统，缺少扎实的学理基础。我们需要去阅读那些经过了时间检验的经典著作，无论是经济学、管理学还是社会、人文、自然科学。只有真正弄清楚了一个学科的来龙去脉，才能在观点纷繁复杂的朋友圈面前，保持自己的判断能力。

Millennials like many of you grew up with the advancement of the Internet, which has in certain respects, made you more knowledgeable and forward-looking than your predecessors. But at the same time, I must say that online information is highly fragmented and lacks systematic grounding in academia. We must peruse the classics on economics, management, society and the humanities, and the natural sciences which have stood the tests of time. Only by grasping the theoretical basis of various disciplines can you keep hold of sound judgment amid complex social circles.

从老师角度来说，最大的挑战是来自于我们对过去路径的依赖和对年青一代的成见。包括我在内的学院管理层，虽然一直乐于学习，但与新入学的少年学子相比，依然是距离越来越远。同学们对我的称呼，已经逐渐由18年前的牛哥，慢慢变成了最近两年的牛叔。我们有着不同的成长背景，不同的生活观念。总有那么一些东西交流起来不是完全的顺畅。不过请大家相信，学院管理层的所有人，都在努力地向年轻一代学习。但在学术领域，老师们有把握认为，我们必须进行严格而必要的约束，你们中的一部分人可能会由于这些约束而感到痛苦。

For teachers, our greatest challenges are our dependence on past experiences and prejudice towards the younger generation. Although the IBS management team are avid learners, myself included, the age gap between us and our students are growing with every intake. My students addressed me as “Brother Niu” 18 years ago, but recently, I’ve become “Uncle Niu”. My generation grew up in a different social context and subscribe to different values, which would inevitably hinder communication between us to some degree. Rest assured, every staff member in IBS management is working hard to learn from the younger generation, but in academia, we teachers need to set boundaries and be strict with you. Some of you may find these boundaries a headache.

我必须把这一点说的特别清楚。一所一流的大学，必须是建立在严格的学术要求基础之上的。在上个周开学准备中，刚刚有三名你们高年级级的同学因为考试不及格而无法升学。上学期中，有大四同学因为论文答辩没有通过而拿不到学位。前一个学年，有若干名同学因为考试作弊而受到严厉处分。今年将会是我们学院全新的教学质量控制措施实施的第一年，学院各项学术纪律和约束，施行的力度将会超越以往。所以，我提醒全体同学，都不要有离开高中后的任何一丝的松懈，而且我甚至还想更进一步地提醒各位同学，对于一个优秀的人来说，优秀是一种习惯（引自范静老师），一生中都不应该有任何的松懈。

I must make clear that a world-class tertiary institution must hold itself to the strictest academic standards. Just last week, three of your fellow students failed their exams and couldn’t move on to their next year. Last semester, a fourth-year student was also unable to graduate due to failing the thesis viva voce. And last year, a number of students were heavily penalized for cheating in their exams. 2018 will also be the first year that IBS enforces its new teaching quality control measures, which will see more stringent academic standards applied across the board. I therefore remind you, fellow students, to not slack off just because you’ve completed high school, because “excellence is a habit for outstanding achievers”, which I quote from Professor Fan Jing, one of our teachers at IBS. You must not slack off a day in your life. 

从社会的角度来说，今天的世界和中国也面临着新的问题和挑战。冷战结束后，旧的全球治理体系失效，新的治理体系尚未形成，大国之间的博弈，从贸易、政治到军事，形成了巨大的不确定性。新技术革命以来，人类生活方式面临变革，传统的组织、家庭、社会结构走向瓦解，新旧观念激烈交锋。奥运会之后，中国经济增长受到挑战，传统的经济增长模式进入极限，新的发展模式尚未建立，转型升级迫在眉睫。最近几年，一线城市大学生就业形势和生活成本急速变化，工作单位的期望值、年轻人的薪水水平和住房价格三者无法相互匹配。未来何去何从令人焦虑。

China and the world are currently facing emerging challenges. The old global governance system collapsed post-Cold War, while a new world order is yet to set in. Uncertainty plagues the trade, political and military landscape as major countries jockey for power. The recent technological revolution is overhauling our lifestyles and eroding traditional institutional, family and social structures. Old and new values are clashing fiercely. China has also been confronting challenges to its economic growth since the 2008 Beijing Games. Our nation has a burning imperative to upgrade and restructure its economy as the traditional growth model is no longer applicable. Graduates in first-tier cities face grave employment issues and skyrocketing living costs as career expectations, remuneration and property prices have trouble being reconciled. The outlook seems disquieting.

这是我们在未来需要一起面临的挑战。我们可能没有办法很快改变环境，但我们能够用最广阔的视野和扎实的知识武装自己，成为环境改变的积极因素。你在北外国商的几年，掌握以下几个核心的能力，将有助于改善你在未来竞争中的位置：

These trials wait for us down the track. We may not be able to change our environment immediately, but we can arm ourselves with a broad vision and adequate knowledge to effect changes in this environment. The next few years at BFSU IBS will equip you with the following skills that afford you a competitive edge in the future:

一是极其一流的外语能力。中国同学的英语、外籍同学的汉语，以及大家有兴趣学习的其他外语语种，都是北外学生最为核心的竞争力。我要特别介绍待会要发言的余皪校友，就是当年全国英语比赛的冠军获得者。二是广阔的视野和跨文化沟通能力。我们有得天独厚的国际化校园，同时商学院同时能够为大家提供大量的出国交流交换机会。每个人都应该主动积极地与来自不同文化背景的人交流，积极参与学校社团，努力做到相互理解。三是锲而不舍的企业家精神。任何一家商学院，其核心的任务，都是将企业家精神播撒在同学的血液，用有限的生命，成就无限的创新，把看似不可能的任务，变成可能。四是建设强大的内心世界。中国古语有云：“不以物喜，不以己悲”，在行动上入世，在心灵中出世，商业学科，倡导人与人的合作共赢，未来你们要承受巨大的工作压力，因此你们要从现在开始就锻炼百折不挠。

First, outstanding proficiency in foreign languages. BFSU students excel at foreign languages, whether it be Chinese students learning English, foreign students learning Chinese, or any other languages of your interest. Shortly, I’ll have the honor of inviting our alumnus Mr. Xu Li, previous winner of a national English competition to the stage as guest speaker. Second, an open horizon and intercultural communication skills. At BFSU, we offer a truly cosmopolitan campus while IBS also provides students with many overseas exchange opportunities. Each of you should take the initiative to engage with those from various cultural backgrounds, take part in student unions on campus, and strive for mutual understanding. Third, a persevering entrepreneurial spirit. Our business school’s mission, like any other, is to instill an entrepreneurial spirit in our students so they can devote their lives to achieving boundless innovation and turning the impossible into reality. Fourth, building a powerful inner self. According to an old Chinese saying, “one should neither be pleased by external gains nor saddened by personal losses.” We should make a difference to society through our deeds and not obsess over name and fame at the expense of spiritual enlightenment. The business discipline advocates win-win cooperation. You must cultivate an indomitable spirit starting now, for enormous pressure awaits you in your future careers.

最后，我想用我写在迎新手册中的一句话结束我的演讲：

I would like to conclude this speech with a statement I wrote in the New Student Handbook:

大学之大，有思想之独立，有人性之光辉，有自由之思考。有坚持，有挣扎，有妥协。然后为国之栋梁！

A university should embrace and nurture independence of thought, freedom of mind, and the splendor of humanity. It should be a place where you can stay true to your goals, meet your struggles, and learn to compromise. Through this “rite of passage”, you will grow into the pillars of our nation in the years to come.

谢谢大家！

Thank you!