To study the school running traditions and organizational systems of world-class universities, and develop the outsight, perception, and competence of Xinya students in an international environment, the delegations of freshmen from Class of 2017 and 2018, under the leadership of Cao Li, Li Mu, Gu Xueyong, Gao Jin, Ge Weikun, Zhang Lei, and other faculty members in the disciplines of humanities, arts, and sciences, paid an academic visit to the University of Oxford in early 2018 and 2019 respectively. Aside from learning the collegiate system, the tutorial system, and college community, the delegations attended lectures and discussions offered by Miles Young, Warden of New College, David Palfreyman, author ofThe Oxford Tutorial, Prof. Robert Taylor at the Department of Physics, Prof. Jessica Rawson, Warden of Merton College, and other scholars on sciences, humanities, arts, and other disciplines. With such efforts, they conducted multidimensional and multifaceted field research on the school running traditions and characteristics of the University of Oxford, to improve the ability of all students to understand and communicate across civilizations, cultures, and disciplines.

The cross-cultural communication and interdisciplinary exchanges between Chinese and British teachers and students, their distinctive insights and common understanding about top-notch universities and colleges, and the comprehension of the persistence and changes of the University of Oxford and Oxford City over time are fresh in their memory and essential steps to build the Xinya community. Students, with reflection on what world-class universities and colleges are and what responsibilities they shoulder, will embark on a new journey.

Xinya College launched the program to learn Athens, Greece in 2019. It is based on Ancient Greek Civilization, a general education course taught by Prof. Gan Yang. Aiming to study Greek history and culture, students are required to readThe Histories by Herodotus,History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides, the trilogyThe Oresteia by Aeschylus,Theogony by Hesiod, andAncient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History. Then, they visit historical remains in Athens and Crete and the University of Athens, understand the social and cultural features of modern Greece, and learn the developments and changes of Greece from an ancient civilization to a modern country, in a bid to train students' historical awareness and contemporary perspective.