A joint venture between Guangdong Machinery Technician College and German industrial conglomerate Siemens will open in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, in September.

The Sino-German College of Siemens Technology will initially have two classes, in mechatronics and industrial robotics, with about 36 students in each, said Liu Xinlin, its vice-president.

Siemens will send teachers from its technical academy in Berlin to train Chinese teachers, said Feng Weiyuan, president of Guangdong Machinery Technician College.

The company will also offer students internships and job opportunities, Feng said, adding that they would need to speak English to be enrolled.

The two sides will also work together on a smart manufacturing program, establishing an innovation and entrepreneurship base and teaching resources, as well as training for the WorldSkills Competition, the world championships of vocational skills, at Guangdong Machinery Technician College.

After four years of study, graduates will receive certificates from both the Siemens Technical Academy Berlin and Guangdong Machinery Technician College.

Students from the Guangdong college, one of the top vocational schools in China, has won four gold, two silver and three bronze medals at the WorldSkills Competition in the past two years.

It has been engaged in training cooperation with some Fortune Global 500 companies, including Siemens, Carl Zeiss and Sandvik, and has had 110 foreign and domestic corporate partners in the past three years, Feng said.