Date: 28/01/2008

On December 17 2007, four winners of the “Campus Star Contest” of Microsoft IT Curriculum in China made their dream trip to the United States to visit Microsoft Head Office in Seattle. These winners came from different vocational universities in China, they were impressed by the Microsoft Campus, the “Home of the Future” and the Information Center which exposed the youngsters to the state-of-the-art IT technologies and the potentially tremendous changes that technologies might bring to human life.

The Campus Star Contest was jointly sponsored by Microsoft and ATA, Microsoft’s Gold Partner in delivering the career-driven IT curriculum in 260 colleges and universities in China. A total of 3188 students from 67 colleges/universities participated in the performance-based skills contest. The America tour is not only a reward to the top winners but also the climax of the contest.

Through the study tour, the students have felt themselves much approved, the direction of their future better defined and their field of vision widened. “I’ve seen the life style for the next two decades, which is really exciting, and I’ve also seen the infinite potentials IT technologies may bring”, said Tao Zehua, the winner from Wuhan College of Business and Trade.

The America tour is one of the most valuable and proudest experiences of the students and will have a far-reaching impact on their future development. With years of continuous efforts, the China MOE Polytechnic program of Microsoft and ATA has cultivated more than 80,000 applicable IT talents for China. Graduates from this program have changed from ordinary students to professionals, enter international companies and achieve success in their careers. ATA and Microsoft have announced that the “Campus Star” student contest will be held regularly as a way to furthering their goal to offer the most advanced technologies and educational concepts to the Chinese students.