The first Doctoral Dissertation Oral Defense of the FED City U was held on 23rd May 2016. Xu Xiaoshu successfully defended her thesis, Construction and Implementation of the ESP Teacher Competency Framework--from the Perspective of PLE-ESP Platform. The Oral Defense Committee consisted of Prof. Zhang Baohong from Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Changjiang Scholar Prof. Liu Baocun from Beijing Normal University, and Prof. Li Xin and Prof. Du Wencai from the FED City U.

Xu Xiaoshu first introduced the basic structure of her thesis in detail. The committee raised questions on the significance of the subject, theoretical framework, definition of key terms, data analysis, and research conclusions. Xu Xiaoshu answered all questions and discussed in-depth the academic issues. The committee highly remarked on the thesis of the first Ph.D graduating from the FED and noted the practical and theoretical values of its theme and theoretical construction.

Since the M. Ed and Ph.D. Programs of the FED were launched in 2012, the faculty has adhered to a strict education philosophy. By building a team of supervisors consisting of leading figures in the academia, the faculty puts huge effort in providing a diversified and internationalized academic platform for all students. Staying true to its mission of developing senior professionals for Macau, the faculty contributes to talent development for Mainland China, Hongkong, and Taiwan. By organizing academic seminars on thesis writing and research methods and SPSS workshops, the FED provides strong academic support for all students of the faculty on their way to successful completion of their studies.