Learning without limits
To cater to the senior population's growing needs and interests, more institutions are offering courses to help keep aging folks engaged with technology, community and family, He Qi reports.
A variety of innovative courses catering to the elderly will be offered in the upcoming semester, including civil code essentials, wealth management, pet care, group counseling for seniors, AI basics, coffee crafting, bartending, and African drumming, which will enrich seniors' learning journeys.
"These courses were tailored based on a survey among Shanghai's elderly earlier this year," Peng explains. Priced between 200 and 500 yuan ($27.9-69.8) per semester and in high demand, seats often fill quickly. Traditional courses like piano, instrumental music, dancing, painting, singing, and newer offerings, such as coffee making and AI guidance, are the most popular.
The AI application guide course has sparked curiosity from many seniors by introducing tools like DeepSeek and ByteDance's Doubao large language model to keep them up-to-date on technology.
"Everyone strives to stay updated. Despite my age, I've gained valuable insights at the senior university. While I may not be as proficient as the younger generation in using mobile phones, I excel among my peers," shares Zhang Zhifang, who plans to enroll in a mobile phone photography course this semester.
The coffee course, which quickly reached capacity within half an hour on its opening day, has been in high demand since its introduction last September.
Luo Ke, the project leader, mentions the addition of a mixology course this year: "Several senior community universities have shown interest in our courses. We plan to develop more tailored courses for the elderly, integrating coffee and mixology into their daily lives."
Additionally, the trend of university-enterprise cooperation is growing. L'Oreal Group will collaborate with the university to launch beauty image management courses.
Huang Yan, training director of L'Oreal China's consumer products division, notes: "We have observed a strong desire for maintaining beauty among the new silver-haired generation in Shanghai. These courses will blend theory with practical exercises, offering numerous personalized customization options and cutting-edge content. Topics will include mature skin care and personalized makeup for various scenarios. The first class will enroll up to 30 participants."
