The CNU was established with co-sponsorship by the Beijing Municipal Government and the Ministry of Education in 1954. Its various departments include Literature, Science, Engineering, Management, Education, Foreign Language and Fine Arts. Since its establishment, the CNU has contributed innumerable professionals to various industries. Over the 63 years since its establishment, the CNU has proven to be the ideal base for educating and training teachers for the basic field of education in Beijing and contributing towards the modernization of China.
Presently, the CNU runs 17 primary disciplines which confer doctoral degrees, 101 doctoral programs, 16 postdoctoral research centers, 25 primary disciplines which confer master degrees and 145 masters programs. The CNU also has 4 National Key Disciplines, 1 National Support for Key Disciplines, 8 Beijing Municipal Primary Key Disciplines, 12 Beijing Municipal Secondary Key Disciplines, 2 Beijing Municipal Primary Discipline (in process), 13 Beijing Municipal Secondary Disciplines (under construction), 4 Beijing Municipal Supported Primary Disciplines and 2 Beijing Municipal Interdisciplinary Disciplines. As for the research level, CNU has 1 cultivation base for National Key Laboratory co-sponsored by Province and Ministry of Education, 2 key laboratories of the Ministry of Education, 1 Humanities and Social Science Key College Research Base supervised by the Ministry of Education, 1 Science Research Center of the Ministry of Education, 1 Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, 1 National Experimental Teaching Demonstration Center, 1 Teaching Center for Virtual Simulation Experiment (National-level) , 1 National and International Technological Cooperation Base,1 National Language Research Base, 1 Beijing Municipal laboratory, 10 Beijing Municipal Key laboratories, 2 Beijing University Science Research Center, 1 research center for engineering technologies of Beijing Municipality, 1 engineering lab of Beijing Municipality, 1 Beijing Social Science and Natural Science Collaborative Innovation and Research Base，4 cultivation bases for Beijing University municipal-level out-school talents, and 7 Beijing Municipal Experimental Teaching Demonstrating Centers, 8 provincial and ministry-level research (college, institution, center) and labs.
There are 30 colleges and departments in CNU. There is a total of 27 colleges and departments here. They include the Colleges of Literature, History, Political Science and Law, Education, Foreign Language Studies, Marxism Education, Management, Music, Fine Art, Mathematics and Science, , Life Science, Resource Environment and Tourism, Information Engineering, , Primary Education, Preschool Education, , Adult Education, International College, Chinese Cultural Education, the Jingjiang College, the Yandu College Departments of Physics, Chemistry and Educational Technology, Liangxiang Campus for Basic Education, the Research Institute of the Culture of Calligraphy of China, Institute of Cultural Studies, , Capital Institute of Basic Education Development and Research, Teaching and Research Department of College English and Teaching and Research Department of Physical Education, and so on. Apart from these, the CNU has 1 major for junior college education, and 57 majors for undergraduate. 100 full-time throughout educated students, among which With 760 full-time junior college students, 10,940 undergraduates, 6592 masters, 712 Ph.Ds., 760 adult education students and 650 international students the total number of students at CNU is 30,185. CNU has formed a multi-dimensional and multi-level operational structure and teaching system covering it all right from the junior college education to undergraduates, masters, Ph. D.s, and post-doctorates, from full-time education to adult education and international education.
There is a total teaching staff of 2,512 at CNU. Among the 1,489 full-time teachers, there are 335 professors, 598 associate professors, 974 Ph.D holders, and 400 master degree holders; those with master degree or above account for 92% of all teachers. A number of influential and famous scholars also lend their expertise to CNU. There are 6 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Science and Chinese Academy of Engineering, 1 academician of the Russian Academy of Engineering, 1 academician of Russian Academy of Natural Science, 4 members of the discipline review group of the Academic Degree Commission of the State Council, 13 members of Discipline Teaching Instruction Committee of the Ministry of Education, 4 professionals selected by the “Thousand Talents Plan”, 5 professional selected by the “10,000 Talent Plan” as the leading talent for the first “Hundred, Thousand and Ten Thousand Project” , 1 professionals selected by “10,000 Talent Plan” of The Organizing Department of CCCPC for Young Top Talent Cultivation Program, 12 distinguished professors of Cheung Kong Scholar Program of the Ministry of Education, 1 visiting professor of Cheung Kong Scholar Program of the Ministry of Education, 11 scholars supported by the National Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, 14 Professors Selected as 2014 Culture Master—“Four Groups ” Talent, 12 professionals selected by national “Hundred, Thousand and Ten Thousand Project”, 20 professionals selected by Beijing Overseas Talent Concentration Project, 37 Beijing Technology Stars, 9 selected by the Great Scholar Program, and 3 creativity teams of the Ministry of Education. 64 CNU teachers have been recipients of the Zeng Xianzi Teaching Award and the Henry Fok Young Teacher Teaching and Research Award.
In 2003, the CNU was declared as the “Outstanding University of Undergraduate Teaching” in the undergraduate teaching review conducted by the Ministry of Education. Currently, CNU has 7 national distinguished majors, 10 Beijing Municipal distinguished majors, 6 national teaching teams, 8 Beijing Municipal teaching teams, 3 experimental centers for innovation of national talent cultivation mode, 1 experimental center for innovation of Beijing municipal talent cultivation mode, 1 education base for national university student extracurricular practice and 2 bases for Beijing demonstrating university of innovation and practice. CNU also has 12 national elaborate courses, 29 Beijing Municipal elaborate courses, 1 national bilingual teaching demonstration course, 20 Eleventh Five-year Plan textbooks of the Ministry of Education, 5 national elaborate textbooks, 1 classic textbook for Beijing higher education, 57 elaborate textbooks for Beijing higher education, 16 national-planned textbooks of the undergraduate education of the Twelfth Five-year Plan, 1 national elaborate online open course, 6 national elaborate courses for resource sharing, and 8 national elaborate courses for teaching resource sharing. In addition, the CNU has 2 national ‘famous teachers’, 21 Beijing municipal ‘famous teachers’ and in 2008 the CNU was declared as the “National Innovative Experiment Program for University Students”. Through the review of outstanding teaching work, CNU won 2 first prizes and 13 second prizes (including cooperation program) of national outstanding teaching work awards and 96 Beijing municipal outstanding teaching work awards. The CNU students have achieved many prizes in the “Challenge Cup”, Mathematics Modeling and Computer Application contests, Electronics contest, English Public Speaking Contest and other national and municipal competitions. Last but not the least, the top talent cultivation has gained great achievement and glory by winning 2 National Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Awards, 8 National Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Nomination Awards and 9 Beijing Municipal Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Awards.
The CNU has more than 90 research centers and also the Science Park for Beijing Universities. Since the Eleventh Five-year Plan, the CNU has been approved with 22 topics and sub-topics of National Technology Support Program, 1,408 science research projects above the provincial and ministry level, with 427 projects of national natural science fund, 178 projects of national social science fund, 17 key projects of national social science fund, 18 projects of “863 Program” and its sub topic and 26 cooperation projects of “973 Program”. Additionally, the CNU once was the runner-up at the State Scientific and Technological Progress Award, first at the State Technological Progress Award (the second unit), won 12 Beijing Technological Awards and 121 awards above municipal and ministry level. CNU has published Journal of CNU (social science edition and natural science edition), Chinese Herald , Secondary Chinese Teaching , and The Art of Education .
With 0.77 million square meters of teaching buildings, the entire CNU campus spans 0.88 million square meters. Its total net value including all the assets is estimated to be 11.32 billion. The CNU library which stores 982.2 thousand of books represents one of the national key libraries for documentary reference. Not only that the CNU boasts of a complete digital campus with a stable comprehensive and effective Internet. And there are also artificial turf playgrounds which comply with national standards, gymnasiums, badminton courts, swimming pools and other sports facilities.
The CNU actively participates in international cultural exchange. Its list of exchange and cooperation bonds includes 216 universities from 41 countries and regions. It has founded 6 Confucius Institutes, namely Confucius Institute at Russian St. Petersburg National University, Confucius Institute at the University of Minnesota, Confucius Institute at the University of Venice (Università Ca' Foscari Venezia), Confucius Institute at the University of Piura, Confucius Institute at the State University of New York at Buffalo and the Bremen Confucius Institute in Germany. The CNU has co-cultivated 577 masters of education with Flinders University in Australia. The CNU is also among the few universities that accept international students and students from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, and it is the only demonstration base for international students, authorized by the Ministry of Education among all universities that are supervised by the Beijing municipal governments. In addition, the CNU is the base of “Chinese Government Scholarship for International Students’ Pre University Education”.
The CNU High School and the CNU Yuxin School are experimental bases for school education and teaching reforms and the CNU High School is the first listed key high school and demonstration high school in Beijing.
The CNU is always accords great importance to the Party construction and ideological and political educational work. In recent years, the CNU was considered as the national and Beijing municipal “Outstanding University on Party Construction and Ideological and Political Educational Work” by the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, the Propaganda Department of the CPC Central Committee, Beijing Municipal Party Committee and Beijing Municipal Government. To add to it, the CNU has won the “Capital Outstanding Unit in Spiritual Civilization Construction”, “Outstanding Unit on Beijing Ideological and Political Educational Work” and other prizes.
In the future, CNU aims for creative and progressive strides towards being a special and excellent normal university.
