Jinan University


Jinan University is a public research university based in Tianhe District, Guangzhou city, Guangdong province, China. It is one of the oldest universities established in China, tracing back to the Qing dynasty.
Jinan University was founded in 1906 in Nanjing, whose mission is to spread Chinese learning and culture from North to South, and from China overseas. It is the first university in China to recruit foreign students, and is currently a Chinese university with the largest number of international students.
Jinan University is currently administered by both the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council and the Chinese Ministry of Education. In 1996, it was included in the state's Project 211 for development of key universities. In 2017, it was listed as one of the “double first-class universities".
Jinan University has many famous subjects home and abroad, such as Science of Medicine, Pharmaceutical Science, Science of Chemistry, Science of Engineering, Science of Economics, Science of Finance, Science of Journalism and Communication. And Chinese Language and Literature, specially Overseas Chinese Language, is the characteristic subject of JNU.

History

In 1906, Duanfang, the Viceroy of Liangjiang, submitted a memorandum to the Guangxu Emperor, proposing that an overseas Chinese school be set up for the purpose of spreading far and wide the enlightening influence of education and strengthening the emotional ties with compatriots overseas. The Guangxu Emperor approved of his proposal and thus Duanfang was honored as the founder of Jinan University. On March 23, 1907. Jinan Academy was founded in Nanjing, becoming the first of its kind in Chinese history and serving as a curtain-raiser for the later development of overseas Chinese education.
In 1927, Jinan Academy was renamed National Jinan University, located in Shanghai. After the foundation of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Jinan University was closed and its schools were merged with those of other university such as Fudan University. In 1958, Jinan University was reestablished in Guangzhou.

University name

The name "Jinan" comes from the Classic of History, a compilation of documentary records related to events in ancient Chinese history. The articles reads, "His speech and teachings spread from South, from China to the rest of the world.

Timeline

The university has five campuses:
Jinan University has 27 colleges, comprising 59 departments and offering 89 undergraduate major fields. Among the 55 departments, 43 offer master's degree programs and 19 offer Ph.D degree-granting programs. There are 15 postdoctoral research stations, 182 research institutes and 77 labs in Jinan University.
The university has four national key disciplines, eight key disciplines of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council, 20 Guangdong Province Level-I key disciplines, and four Guangdong Province Level-II key disciplines. The university has a key research base of national humanity and social sciences, a teaching and research base for Chinese language and literature of the Education Ministry, a base for national university cultural quality education, a base of national base for teaching Chinese as a foreign language, an educational base for overseas Chinese education of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council, and a key research base of humanity and social science of Guangdong Province. The university has one national engineering center, 7 ministerial centers and provincial centers, and 11 key ministerial and provincial key laboratories.
There are 50,535 students in the university, including 10,767 graduates and 22,527 undergraduates. The number of overseas students, including foreign students, overseas Chinese students, students from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, is 13,512.
The current president is Dr. Hu Jun. It has recently started a new undergraduate course MBBS, with mainly Indian students.

University achievements

Jinan University has been active at academic exchanges, and has established academic cooperation or academic exchange liaison with more than 180 universities and research institutes in Asia, the Americas, Europe, and Oceania. It partnered with City University, Malaysia to form an international think tank on Sino-Malaysian cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative.
Now the university has 57 regional alumni associations all over the world.

Colleges and schools

The International School is a college which provides programs taught exclusively in English. The School was established to cater to the escalating needs of Overseas Chinese and foreign students and selected high-caliber students from China. The Undergraduate Programs include Computer Science, International Economics and Trade, Clinical Medicine, Accounting, Food Quality and Safety, Pharmacy, Public Administration, Finance and Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery.

Management School

Base on JNU humanity tradition and accumulation of disciplines, School of Management tries the best to be one of top business schools in China for cultivating talents in management, it has deep understanding in Chinese culture, globalization with modern business education.
In 2011, Jinan University MBA programs were granted international accreditation of AMBA.

College of Chinese Language and Culture

The College was conferred as the "National Base of Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language" by The Education Ministry, and "Overseas Chinese Education Base" by Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council. The College has become the top college in South China offering the programs of teaching Chinese as a second or foreign language and overseas Chinese education.
The college consists of the Department of Teaching Chinese as a Second or Foreign Language, the Department of Overseas Chinese Education, the Department of Applied Linguistics, Pre-University Department, Correspondence Course Department, Overseas Chinese Education Researching Institute, Overseas Chinese Researching Center, and Internet & Educational Technology Center.

Rankings

YearQS University Rankings Times Higher Education
2019151
2018184
2017195801-1000
2016NA

In 2017, Times Higher Education ranked the university within the 801-1000 band globally.

Controversies

Misuse of personal information for facilitating pro-Beijing candidate in 2019 Hong Kong local elections

Apple Daily Hong Kong reported that during 2019 Hong Kong local elections, they received complaints from Hong Kong students who were studying at Jinan University. In accordance with the complaints, many students from Hong Kong were requested to meet the academic staff or counselors separately. During the meetings, the university staff members were able to mention the constituency that the students belonged to. The students were requested to vote for the pro-Beijing candidates, while the university might provide free transportation for them.

Notable alumni