Hsinchu was formerly known as "Chuchien" and is the earliest established city in northern Taiwan. There are various opinions on the scope of the "Old City" of Hsinchu. Currently, the widely accepted area is the region surrounded by four major roads in the east, west, south, and north of Hsinchu City, as well as the areas reached through road extensions.

Since 2015, Tsinghua University has entered the Old City of Hsinchu and established the "Open Studio" on the third floor of the abandoned East Gate Market as a base work station. Through collaboration with the Hsinchu City Government, local businesses, and organizations, the East Gate Market has been revitalized, becoming part of the daily life of Hsinchu residents. Through years of interaction between Tsinghua and local units, a network of local "guides" covering major issues in Hsinchu has been gradually constructed.

By establishing diverse channels and combining various aspects of courses to guide students towards practical engagement. For example, the "Glass Aesthetic Center" combines professional art and design craftsmanship with business district shops, recycling discarded glass from businesses, transforming them into vessels that combine local industry and culture; themed music general education courses in collaboration with local theater troupes lead students to perform modern stories in the style of Taiwanese opera, allowing them to understand the opera culture; courses with a focus on biological art curation and using the Old City business district as material, create many interesting works that integrate technology. Through Problem-Based Learning (PBL) workshops, collaboration with Chiba University, daily high school students, and intertwining with the USR (University Social Responsibility) program, cross-team and interdisciplinary understanding of the needs and development of the business district shops is deepened, creating unique experiential learning opportunities.