Huzhou University is located in North Zhejiang Province’s Huzhou City, a national historical and cultural city, where President Xi Jinping’s philosophy that “lush mountains and lucid waters are invaluable assets” was originated, and where the idea of Beautiful Countryside started. 

Its history dated back to the year of 1916 when the Qiantang Dao(“Dao” is an old administrative unit, almost like the “county”) set up the No. 3 Teachers’ Training School. It began to carry out higher education program in 1958, and started to enroll undergraduates in 1994. In March 1999, Huzhou University was founded by consolidating three former colleges and schools: Huzhou Normal Junior College, Huzhou Teacher’s School and Huzhou Teacher’s Training School. In May 2000, former Huzhou Medical School was merged into the newly founded university. On February 6, 2006, Xi Jinping, then top official of Zhejiang Province, made an inspection tour at Huzhou University, proposing his hope that Huzhou University “should act upon its own conditions with its own characteristics and serve the local”, striving to forge it into “Huzhou Normal University, which is of quite influence, at quite a level and enjoys quite a status nationwide.” Huzhou University began to enroll postgraduates in 2012, and was authorized as a Master’s Degree Conferring Institution in 2018. In 2021, School of Qiuzhen, its independent college, was transformed to a public university-- Huzhou College. Throughout its century-long history, Huzhou University has been adhering to “明体达用”（understanding the truth and learning for practice）as its motto, thus gradually forming its spirit: hard working despite difficulties, ceaselessly pursuing self-improvement, embracing the world with innovation and being liberal and conscientious. The university has been entitled as the National Civilized Unit, National Model for Learning LeiFeng Spirit, National Award for Aiding the Disabled, National Language Promotion Base,  China’s Fine Traditional  Culture (Silkworm) Heritage Base approved by Ministry of Education, Model University of Application Construction of Zhejiang Province, National Innovation Alliance of Yangtze River Delta Forestry for Common Prosperity, etc. It is among the first batch of pilot universities to implement the national education training programs called “Excellent Doctors” and “Excellent Talents of Agriculture and Forestry”. 

Huzhou University is a full-time comprehensive university with excellent teachers training tradition and distinctive application characteristics. It offers a wide exposure to eleven different academic disciplines, including education, engineering, agriculture, medical science, science, literature, economics, arts, jurisprudence, management and history. It has fourteen faculties, namely, Anding Honors College/School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, School of Economics and Management, School of Marxism, School of Teacher Education, School of Physical Education, School of Humanities, School of Foreign Languages, Art School, Music School, School of Science, School of Information Engineering, School of Engineering, School of Life Science, School of Medicine and Nursing, in addition to six affiliated hospitals, two clinical medical schools and eleven affiliated schools. Huzhou University has an area of 1560 Mu (about 104 hectares) with over 3,800,000 books available in its library. It delivers enrollment programs in 29 provinces with about 13400 full-time students (1900 postgraduates included). Huzhou University now has more than 2900 faculty members, including 826 professors and associate professors, 1 Academician of Academy of Sciences of Mexico, 1 Academician of Academy of Sciences of South Africa, 1 Foreign Academician of Ukrainian Academy of Engineering, 3 Shared Academicians, 13 experts from top national talent programs like “National 10000 Talents” Program, National Excellent Youth Program, National Talent Program and National Famous Teacher Program, plus 70 experts from “100 Talents” Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences, “Qianjiang Scholar” Distinguished Professors of Zhejiang Province, “Zhejiang Province 10000 Talents” Program, etc. Three disciplines rank as among ESI 1%, including mathematics, clinical medicine and engineering. Huzhou University has 16 programs leading to a master’s degree and 16 key disciplines of provincial or municipal level. Among its 53 bachelor programs, there are 2 National Featured Programs, 3 National First-class Programs, 1 Program Reform Project of the Ministry of Education, 1 “Excellent Doctors” Training Program and 1 “Excellent Talents of Agriculture and Forestry” Pilot Program, 12 Provincial First-class programs and 20 Province Key (advantageous, featured) Programs.

Huzhou University has 13 research and innovation platforms of provincial level and above. It has been granted 4 National Teaching Achievement Awards, 7 top level and 17 secondary level Provincial Teaching Achievement Awards. In addition, it has been awarded 2 Excellent Achievement Prize in Humanities by Ministry of Education, 5 top level prizes by Zhejiang Provincial Government, including Prize for Humanities, Prize for Science and Technology Advancement, Excellent Achievement in Social Science; it also has 78 other provincial level prizes for achievements in scientific researches. 

Huzhou University set up a Confucius Institute at Azerbaijan University of Languages in an active response to the nation’s Belt and Road Initiative, and it set up the Multicultural Research Center jointly with Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. It establishes close relationship and academic exchange with over 60 universities and institutes from over 20 countries. Students from 30 countries, like Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Bangladesh, are now studying at Huzhou University. 

In the New Era, Huzhou University, guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, will act in strict accordance with Xi Jinping’s guidance during his inspection tour on its campus as well as the “six elements” of the talent cultivation requirements, namely, the talents should have “ideals, moralities, knowledge, visions, usefulness and accomplishments”. Huzhou University will be adhering to its theory about schooling, always taking “students as the basis”, “scholars as the focal point”, “academics as essentials” and “disciplines as the premise.” Huzhou University will stride firmly on the path to connotative development, focusing on building a shared future between the city and the university; it will forge ahead with the aim to upgrade itself into “Huzhou Normal University, which is of quite influence, at quite a level and enjoys quite a status nationwide.” 

(Statistics Updated: October 31, 2022)