Yuzhuo Cai

Dr. Yuzhuo Cai is a Professor in the Department of Education Policy and Leadership and Co-Director of the Global Research Institute for Finnish, European, and Global South Education at The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK). Prior to joining EdUHK, he spent over two decades with the Higher Education Group at Tampere University in Finland, with which he still remains affiliated. His research is internationally recognised in areas such as institutional theory analysis in higher education, the internationalisation of higher education, the Triple Helix model of innovation, university engagement in innovation ecosystems, and graduate employability. As Principal Investigator of the NEXT-UP project, he led the consortium in securing a €2.9 million Horizon Europe grant and has continued to serve as the project’s Co-Investigator following his job transition from Tampere to Hong Kong in April 2025.