Students from a university in China will soon be able to earn degrees from Seton Hill University under an agreement signed Thursday at the Greensburg campus.

Seton Hill has reached an articulation agreement with Shandong University, an institution serving 95,000 students on the eastern coast of China.

The agreement will allow Shandong students who have studied for two years there to come to Seton Hill for their final two years of study and earn a bachelor’s degree in business from Seton Hill.

“We are very proud of this new alliance, and we look forward to welcoming to Greensburg, to this county and to the state of Pennsylvania the students who will come from … Shandong Province, the birthplace of Confucius,” Seton Hill President JoAnne Boyle said during the brief signing ceremony.

Terrance DePasquale, dean of graduate and external programs at Seton Hill, said Boyle met with representatives from Shandong during a trip to China in May. Shandong was interested in a partnership with Seton Hill, and DePasquale and other Seton Hill administrators put together a program that would meet both institution’s needs.

The agreement was finalized during a trip by Seton Hill officials to China this week, and Shandong representatives traveled to Greensburg to sign the agreement.

“I believe through this cooperation, our friendship will last forever,” Shandong representative Zhang Schichang said through an interpreter at the ceremony. “Through this cooperation, we will have fruitful understanding.”

DePasquale said the agreement benefits both universities by providing a cultural exchange.

“It internationalizes our campus, and so it gives our students an opportunity to interact with students from other cultures and to get a world view,” DePasquale said.

The agreement benefits Shandong students as well.

“They’re very desirous of an American education,” DePasquale said. “It helps them get jobs, especially in international companies.”

About five to 10 Shandong students are anticipated to participate in the program in the beginning. Students could arrive at Seton Hill as early as next fall.

DePasquale said the agreement opens up other possibilities, including having Seton Hill students study at Shandong. Faculty exchanges also are a possibility, he said.

The agreement is the first of its kind for Seton Hill. The university does have short-term student exchanges with its sister school, Beijing Union University, with students from both schools visiting for about three weeks.

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