Shen Yang - Born on November 7, 1959 in Zhejiang, China. He was educated in both China and the United Kingdom: first as an English language student in Shanghai Foreign Languages Institute (1971-81), and was then sent to UK under Chinese Government Scholarship Programme, taking English study in Polytechnic of Central London (1981-82) and then applied Linguistics in University of Durham (1982-83); he was also awarded a British Government China Senior Scholarship (Chevening Scheme) to study for Masters degree in Higher Education Administration & Management at the University of Manchester (1989-90).

Mr. Shen was recruited by the Ministry of Education in 1983 and has since worked in the area of international cooperation and exchanges in education for 25 years. He started as a Programme Officer and UK Desk Office in the General Affairs Division and later European Division of Foreign Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Education (which became State Education Commission between 1986 and 1998). He served as Deputy Director of European Division of Department of Overseas Studies of State Education Commitment (1992-93), and was appointed in 1997 Director of European Division of Department of Foreign Affairs (which was renamed Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges in 1998).

In 2000, he was appointed Deputy Secretary-General of China Scholarship Council. He was twice posted overseas to serve in Chinese diplomatic missions in the United States: he was Second Secretary and then First Secretary in the Education Office of the Chinese Embassy in Washington DC (1993-1997); and he served as Chief Education Consul (Education Counselor) in the Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco (2003-2008).

Mr. Shen was appointed Deputy Director-General of Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges of Ministry of Education upon completion of his diplomatic services in San Francisco in August 2008.