Dive Brief:
- The University of Washington and China's Tsinghua University have come together to launch the Global Innovation Exchange, a new technology institute set to open this fall.
- The New York Times reports that the institute will open with a few dozen students in a master’s program in technology innovation and could grow to 3,000 students in various programs over the next decade.
- Microsoft will donate $40 million to the institute, which will ultimately be located in a new development in Bellevue, WA, and faculty from partner universities will teach the courses, according to the article.
Dive Insight:
The Seattle region has long lacked the higher ed infrastructure to match its economy. With major tech companies including Amazon and Microsoft fighting over a small pool of local graduates from the University of Washington, education and tech leaders have been forced to brainstorm ways to increase capacity. The institute represents an extension of the University of Washington, not competition to it, but it will certainly allow the region to graduate additional computer science professionals. The partnership with China is a promising collaboration point, and The New York Times reports additional international partner universities are expected to get on board.
The New York Times also reports that Microsoft has donated $110 million for a separate UW initiative, supporting the construction of a new computer science building that will give the university space to double its undergraduate computer science program from 300 to 600 graduates per year.