HAIKOU -- Hainan Bielefeld University of Applied Sciences (BiUH) is expected to enroll 800 students across 25 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in China this year, according to the admissions office of BiUH.

BiUH, a campus established by Germany's Hochschule Bielefeld University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSBI), is the first independent institution run by a foreign university on the Chinese mainland.

Last Saturday, BiUH, located in Danzhou city of South China's Hainan province, hosted its 2026 Campus Open Day and university admission information session. Many high school students and parents from Beijing, Shanghai, Hainan and other places across China attended the event.

"This event not only provides an important opportunity to showcase our educational achievements, but also serves as a platform for dialogue, exchange, and mutual understanding," said Ingeborg Schramm-W?lk, president of BiUH.

She noted that the university is committed to serving as a bridge between Chinese and German education systems, placing students at the center of its mission while promoting the deep integration of theoretical learning and practical skills to cultivate high-quality, application-oriented talent with international perspectives and innovative capabilities.

BiUH enrolled its first students in 2023, marking the first time China allowed a foreign university to operate independently without a local partner. Currently, it offers seven undergraduate programs, including Computer Science and Technology, Digital Technologies, Industrial Engineering, Logistics Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering and Business Administration.

In April 2018, China announced plans to transform Hainan into a pilot free trade zone, with a long-term vision of developing a free trade port with Chinese characteristics. A master plan released two years later aimed to build Hainan Island into a globally influential and high-level free trade port by the middle of the century.

Under the plan, high-level overseas universities and vocational institutions in science, engineering, agriculture and medicine are permitted to operate independently in the Hainan free trade port (FTP).

To date, Hainan has partnered with 48 domestic and overseas universities, and won approval for two independently operated campuses of foreign universities and 26 Sino-foreign higher-education institutions and programs, according to the provincial department of education.