The Campus Selection Contest of the 29th China Daily "21st Century Cup" National English Speaking Competition was successfully held at XJTU on April 17, 2024, with 74 contestants from different departments vying for a place in the finals.

Organized by XJTU’s School of Foreign Studies and the Public Speaking Association (PSA), the event saw participants from more than 10 schools and departments across the university. A distinguished panel of judges came from the School of Foreign Studies, including Edward Lewis, Chang Hong, Liu Rui, Chu Jianwei, and Qian Xi.

Twenty contestants who excelled from the online preliminary round were selected to compete in the campus-level finals. The competition followed its traditional format, which consists of an impromptu speech and a Q&A session.

Contestants were allowed 20 minutes to prepare their speeches based on randomly selected topics, including "China's Path of Peace Development," "The Pros and Cons of Generative Large Language Models' Popularization," "The Pressure of Marriage," "Interdisciplinary Integration," "Minimalist Lifestyle," and "MBTI Personality Test."

Founded by China Daily in 1996, the "21st Century Cup" National English Speaking Competition is recognized for its rigorous organization and academic standards. It has been designated as the official selection competition for the international public speaking contest held annually in London.

In March 2023, the competition was included in the National College Student Competition Analysis Report and officially recognized by the Ministry of Education as one of China’s top national competitions.

By joining this prestigious contest, XJTU students took a step toward sharing China's voice with the world. The university continues to support globally minded youth with a passion for language, public speaking, and cross-cultural exchange.