Last September, African heads of state, U.S. officials and academic leaders traveled to Stevens for the second annual Africa–US Presidential Forum to promote access to cutting-edge advanced degree programs for talented African STEM scholars, emphasizing AI-focused learning and technically informed MBA programs. Co-host Nekotech Centre of Excellence pledged $1 billion to support 10,000 African graduate students to pursue graduate degrees abroad, including at Stevens, over the next five years. Building on momentum from that event, in November, Stevens also announced its partnership with the Nekotech Centre to recruit and enroll talented graduate students in STEM from Liberia.  

Also last September, in Montréal, Stevens and Finance Montréal signed a memorandum of understanding to boost fintech collaboration in the Montréal/Québec and New York/New Jersey regions. The signing was part of the “Choose New Jersey” economic mission to Canada, led by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, with Murphy, Stevens President Nariman Farvardin and others attending.   

And in October, Stevens signed agreements with several Chinese academic institutions for broader collaboration in education programs and student exchange. Among the universities visited: Central University of Finance and Economics, to discuss educational partnerships, and Shanghai University, with agreements for new collaborative programs in engineering and artificial intelligence. The partnerships will bring Chinese students to Stevens in Fall 2025. 

A Stevens delegation to China also met in October with alumni groups in Beijing and Shanghai and with prospective students.