{"id":842,"date":"2025-04-25T09:03:27","date_gmt":"2025-04-25T16:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/?p=842"},"modified":"2025-04-25T09:03:27","modified_gmt":"2025-04-25T16:03:27","slug":"how-xian-jiaotong-liverpool-university-scaled-hands-on-learning-with-microsoft-dev-box","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/how-xian-jiaotong-liverpool-university-scaled-hands-on-learning-with-microsoft-dev-box\/","title":{"rendered":"How Xi\u2019an Jiaotong-Liverpool University scaled hands-on learning with Microsoft Dev Box"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.xjtlu.edu.cn\/en\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.xjtlu.edu.cn\/wp-content\/uploads\/assets\/images\/brand_protect\/XJTLU_Logo.jpg\" alt=\"Xi\u2019an Jiaotong-Liverpool University\" width=\"564\" height=\"120\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">As AI and data science rapidly reshape industries, universities worldwide are rethinking how they deliver hands-on learning. At <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.xjtlu.edu.cn\/en\">Xi\u2019an Jiaotong-Liverpool University<\/a> (XJTLU)<\/strong> in China, the School of AI and Advanced Computing embraced <strong>Microsoft Dev Box<\/strong> to give students a modern, scalable, and real-world development environment\u2014right from their first year.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s how XJTLU transformed their curriculum and operations with Dev Box, helping 460+ students access powerful computing resources effortlessly.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\ud83c\udfaf<\/strong><strong> The challenge<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>XJTLU is a leader in AI and data science education, with over 700 new students joining each year and totaling about 3000+ undergraduate, master&#8217;s and PhD students. But traditional on-campus computer labs couldn\u2019t keep up:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Shared workstations were reset between classes, erasing progress and causing delays.<\/li>\n<li>Inconsistent setups meant more IT overhead and student frustration.<\/li>\n<li>Faculty needed greater flexibility to deliver complex modules like machine learning, computer vision, and distributed computing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\ud83d\udca1<\/strong><strong> The solution: Microsoft Dev Box<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>To bridge this gap, XJTLU worked with the Microsoft team in China to implement <strong>Microsoft Dev Box<\/strong> for one of their courses. Microsoft Dev Box provided a cloud-hosted, pre-configured development environment that solved these challenges head-on. It enabled students to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Access their lab setup from anywhere\u2014on or off campus.<\/li>\n<li>Use tools like Anaconda, Jupyter, PyTorch, and VS Code without installing anything.<\/li>\n<li>Enjoy a consistent, reliable experience across all machines.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cWe wanted students to experience a modern development environment from day one\u2014one that matches industry practices and scales with our program.\u201d\n\u2014 <strong>Dr. Maruf Hasan<\/strong>, Director of Teaching and Learning<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>\ud83d\udee0\ufe0f<\/strong><strong> How it was implemented<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u2705<\/strong><strong> Tech Stack<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Microsoft 365 A3 Subscription<\/strong> (existing)<\/li>\n<li><strong>180 Intune licenses<\/strong> to manage Dev Box environments<\/li>\n<li><strong>Azure AD<\/strong> for user authentication<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bicep templates<\/strong> for provisioning 180+ Dev Boxes<\/li>\n<li><strong>Custom image<\/strong> with all required tools pre-installed<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\ud83e\uddea<\/strong><strong> Pilot Course<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The course <em>Introduction to Neural Networks<\/em> served as the pilot for using Microsoft Dev Box. Over 7 weeks, 460+ second-year students used Dev Box in both labs and self-study. Machines were auto-hibernated to save costs and recycled after the course.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cIf it runs on my Dev Box, it runs for every student\u2014100% confidence.\u201d\n\u2014 <strong>Dr. Siqi Huang<\/strong>, Program Director, Data Science<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>\ud83c\udf93<\/strong><strong> Student Feedback<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Student response? Surprisingly quiet\u2014in the best way.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u2705 No complaints about installation or access<\/li>\n<li>\u2705 Appreciated the freedom to work remotely<\/li>\n<li>\u2705 Seamless experience from login to model training<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cStudents often complain\u2014but not this time. They were happy, and I think that speaks volumes.\u201d\n\u2014 <strong>Dr. Huang<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>\ud83d\ude80<\/strong><strong> Key Benefits<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Consistency<\/strong>: No more environment drift or troubleshooting<\/li>\n<li><strong>Scalability<\/strong>: Easily supports hundreds, with plans to grow to thousands<\/li>\n<li><strong>Modern experience<\/strong>: Mirrors real-world development practices<\/li>\n<li><strong>Remote access<\/strong>: Learning continues beyond the in-class lab<\/li>\n<li><strong>IT efficiency<\/strong>: Image once, deploy many<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cost controls<\/strong>: Auto-shutdown and hibernation features built in<\/li>\n<li><strong>Faculty empowerment<\/strong>: Fully configurable to fit each course\u2019s needs<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\ud83e\udded<\/strong><strong> Looking Ahead<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>XJTLU plans to expand Dev Box across all four years of its AI and Data Science programs. Their goal? A unified platform that accompanies students throughout their academic journey\u2014becoming a blueprint for institutions globally.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cImagine a student joining in year 1 and using the same cloud environment all the way through graduation. That\u2019s the future we\u2019re building.\u201d\n\u2014 <strong>Dr. Hasan<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>\ud83d\ude4c<\/strong><strong> The Power of Partnership<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This project succeeded due to a strong collaboration with Microsoft\u2019s education team in China.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cTommy and Jacky were phenomenal. Their support made this pilot a joy to implement. We felt like true partners.\u201d\n\u2014 <strong>Dr. Huang<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>\ud83d\udce2<\/strong><strong> Final Thoughts<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Microsoft Dev Box isn\u2019t just a tool\u2014it\u2019s an enabler. For XJTLU, it\u2019s helping bridge the gap between academia and industry, and prepare students for the careers of tomorrow.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re an educator, administrator, or IT leader thinking about modernizing your development labs\u2014<strong>Microsoft Dev Box might be your answer<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As AI and data science rapidly reshape industries, universities worldwide are rethinking how they deliver hands-on learning. At Xi\u2019an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU) in China, the School of AI and Advanced Computing embraced Microsoft Dev Box to give students a modern, scalable, and real-world development environment\u2014right from their first year. Here\u2019s how XJTLU transformed their curriculum [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":174828,"featured_media":843,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2,9,6],"class_list":["post-842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dev-box","tag-dev-box","tag-developer-productivity","tag-developer-tools"],"acf":[],"blog_post_summary":"<p>As AI and data science rapidly reshape industries, universities worldwide are rethinking how they deliver hands-on learning. At Xi\u2019an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU) in China, the School of AI and Advanced Computing embraced Microsoft Dev Box to give students a modern, scalable, and real-world development environment\u2014right from their first year. Here\u2019s how XJTLU transformed their curriculum [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/174828"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=842"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/842\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/843"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/develop-from-the-cloud\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}