Fan was raised in the remote pastures in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region. Before his first trip abroad to Japan in 1990, the then 20-something envisioned the world as portrayed in Hong Kong movies, with long hair and bell-bottom pants seen as trendy.

Later, he underwent several eyeopening experiences during his visits to universities in the US.

In 1998, he founded a startup in Chengdu, Sichuan province, engaged in computer technology development and application.

These experiences of engaging in the industrialization of cutting-edge technology made him aware that "entrepreneurs can create new ways of life".

And Shenzhen is a fertile land that has nurtured numerous private entrepreneurs. Since China's reform and opening-up, Shenzhen has evolved from a rural fishing village into the country's leading city in industrial output value.

In recent years, the city has been endeavoring to develop such strategic emerging industries as semiconductors, integrated circuits, high-end medical devices, biomedicine and new energy. It has also positioned itself in eight future industries, including synthetic biology, brain science and neuromorphic intelligence.

Fan aspires for SUAT to embody the scientific ethos and the spirit of reform and opening-up in Shenzhen, emerging as a university capable of guiding enterprises in innovative development and nurturing talents in the aforementioned emerging industries, rather than solely concentrating on research.

China has been actively implementing an innovation-driven development strategy in recent years. Efforts include enhancing cooperation between industries, universities and research institutes, supporting leading scientists in conducting original and pioneering research to achieve scientific and technological breakthroughs and ensuring self-reliance in critical areas and key sectors.

Around SUAT, there are not only incubators such as the Shenzhen Engineering Biomedical Industry Innovation Center and the Guangming Brain Science and Technology Industry Innovation Center but also resources such as the Neuromorphic Intelligence Industrial Park and the Synthetic Biology Industrial Park. These resource and geographical advantages allow students to have intimate contact with industries and grow together from the moment they enroll, he says.

To enhance the industrial application of research outcomes, the Shenzhen Engineering Biomedical Industry Innovation Center is structured with enterprises located downstairs and SIAT's research team and equipment upstairs.

Cui Junfeng, CEO of a biotech company in the innovation center, fully supports this talent development approach.

"To commercialize the synthetic biology industry, having both an engineering and high-end research team is paramount," says Cui.

While having excelled in China's exam-oriented education system, Fan stands firm against the sole emphasis on test scores.