A long history and fine tradition
        Educational resources and disciplinary advantages
        Characteristics and splendid achievements

A long history and fine tradition

Sun Yat-sen university is a name-brand institution of higher education with fine traditions in teaching and learning. In 1924, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, great leader of the 20th century, founded this university personally, and inscribed in his own handwriting the school motto of "Study extensively; Enquire accurately; Reflect carefully; Discriminate clearly; Practise earnestly." The school was originally named Guangdong University, and later renamed Sun Yat-sen University in 1926. In the 1930s, there were seven schools in the University, which were the Schools of Arts, Sciences, Law, Engineering, Agricultural Studies, Medicine and Education. In 1935, the University set up the Graduate School and began to enroll graduate students. In the 1950s, the colleges, schools and departments were readjusted nationwide, and Sun Yat-sen University became a comprehensive university with the liberal arts and sciences as its backbone disciplines. Since the founding of the new China, Sun Yat-sen University has always been one of national key universities, and is also among the first batch of institutes to award Doctorate and Master degrees and to establish post-doctoral research flowing stations in our country. Approved by the State Council, the university was the first to set up graduate school in the South China area in the early 1990s, thus offering a complete range of degrees from the bachelor, master to doctorate.

The University has been unceasingly raising the quality of undergraduate education and has become an important base for training high-level talents. On the occasion of its 70th anniversary, President Jiang Zemin wrote the inscription of "Develop Dr. Sun Yat-sen's revolutionary spirit, manage the University better and make greater contributions" which further points out the direction for running schools. In September 2000, the Zhuhai Campus of Sun Yat-sen University in Tang Jia Wan, Zhuhai city, was completed, which expands the space and lays a solid foundation for development in the new century. On October 26, 2001, Sun Yat-sen University and the Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Science were merged to form the new Sun Yat-sen University. The Ministry of Education and the government of Guangdong Province signed an agreement, both promising to invest 1.2 billion RMB in 3 years to build the new Sun Yat-sen University into a first class university with high academic standards.

One of the predecessors of the Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Science was the Bo Ji Medical School, which, founded in 1866, was the earliest institution of learning of western medicine in our country, where Dr.Sun Yat-sen once studied and engaged in revolutionary activities. The Bo Ji Medical School evolved into the College of Medicine of Lingnan University in 1936. In 1953, the Colleges of Medicine in Sun Yat-sen University and Lingnan University merged to form the College of Medicine of South China, which was joined by the Guangdong Guanghua College of Medicine in 1954. The university was renamed Guangzhou College of Medicine and Sun Yat-sen College of Medical Science successively, and finally Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Science in 1985, which has developed steadfastly into a comprehensive medical university with multi-schools and multiple levels, has reached national advanced level and achieved remarkable successes in scientific research in medical genetics, ophthalmology, tumor study, parasite study, the kidney disease of internal medicine, organ transplant, infectious liver disease, biological medical project and molecular medical science.

Sun Yat-sen University and the Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Science have rich historical origin and common academic heritage. Many experts and scholars well-known at home and abroad have taught in Sun Yat-sen University, among them are Lu Xun, Guo Moruo, Feng Youlan, Fu Sinian, Zhao Yuanren, Gu Jiegang, Zhou Gucheng, Yu Pingbo, Chen Yinqie, Cen Zhongmian, Jiang Lifu, Wang Yanang, Ma Cai, Rong Geng, Shang Chengzuo, Wang Jisi, Wang Li, Zhong Jinwen, Zhu Qianzhi, Ding Ying, Pu Zhelong, etc. Many famous medical experts have taught in the Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Science, such as Ke Lin, Liang Boqiang, Xie Zhiguang, Chen Xintao, Chen Yaozhen, Qin Guanyu, Lin Shumo, Zhou Shoukai, Zhong Shifan, Mao Wenshu and Chen Guozhen. Famous scholars and great masters have been gathering at the university to nurture generation after generation of students and to cultivate fine academic vogue, and many gifted graduates have become outstanding figures in all walks of life.

After the reform and opening up of our country and driven by the rapid economic growth in Guangdong province, the original Sun Yat-sen University and Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Science have carried out a series of educational reforms and achieved substantial development. Starting from 1993, The Ministry of Education, Department of Health and People's Government of Guangdong province contributed jointly in building the then Sun Yat-sen University and Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Science. In the recent years, both universities have passed the acceptance inspection of the "211 projects"; the various projects of disciplinary development, public service systems and infrastructure construction have been completed smoothly. The merger of the two universities is an amalgamation of two strong institutes, making the syllabus designs more complete and the faculties more comprehensive.

Educational resources and disciplinary advantages

At present, Sun Yat-sen University is a comprehensive university including the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, technical science, medical science, pharmacology and management science. There are 23 schools and colleges, including the School of Humanities, Lingnan College, School of Foreign Languages, School of Law, School Political Science and Public Administration, School of Business, School of Education, School of Communication and Design, School of mathematics and Computational Science, School of Physics and Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, School of Geology and Planning, School of Environmental Science and Project, School of Life Science, School of Information Science and Technology, School of Engineering, School of Oversea Education Exchange, Sun Yat-sen Medical College, School of Fundamental Medicine, School of Public Health, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Nursing School, School of Pharmacology, as well as the Department of Earth Science, the Graduate School, School of Software, School of Network Education, College of Continuing Education, etc.

Sun Yat-sen University offers a wide variety of subject areas and complete disciplines. In the programs of graduate studies, there are 17 disciplines leading to Doctorate and/or Master degrees, of which 146 specialties lead to Doctorate degree, 205 specialties lead to Master degree; in addition, there are 12 branches of studies leading to professional degrees, which are: Doctorate degree in clinical medicine, Master of business administration (MBA), Master of public administration (MPA), Master of judicial studies (JD), Master of computer technology, Master of environmental project, Master of software engineering, Master of electronic and communication engineering. and Master of biology engineering . The University has 12 post-doctorate research floating stations of Chinese language and literature, history, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, fundamental medical science, clinical medical science, management, public management, philosophy, environmental science and engineering; 20 key disciplines at the national level and 43 key disciplines at Guangdong provincial level. In undergraduate education, there are 83 specialties in undergraduate programs, with 6 national bases of fundamental sciences research and training, such as philosophy, Chinese language and literature, history, physics, chemistry and biology, 9 undergraduate specialties of name-brand specialties at the provincial-level. There are also the national bases of education in cultural qualities for college students and the first athletic training base for college student in China. In this year, the number of students of all types amounts to 47000,of which 2400 are doctorate candidates, 6500 are graduate students pursuing master degree, 2900 are part-time graduate students working toward doctorate and master degrees, 19000 are undergraduate students and 420 are international students. Sun Yat-sen University has abundant qualified faculty members. The university has the right to evaluate and confer the titles of full professor and associate professor. There are 12000 faculty and staff members, of which 550 are Ph D candidate supervisors, over 620 are full professors, over 960 are associate professors. Outstanding talented persons keep coming forth from the faculties, there are 4 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and 3 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 15 young and middle-aged experts with outstanding contributions at the national level, 28 recipients of national fund for outstanding young scientists, 12 persons selected in the first and second rounds of the "project of talent selection" by the Ministry of Personnel, 19 candidates chosen for the "plan of training excellent scholars for the new century" by the Ministry of Education, 8 professors specially accredited with the "Yangtze Scholar Scheme" of the Ministry of Education, and 14 experts with outstanding contributions selected by the Department of Health.

The university has a batch of laboratories and research bases with advanced standards and complete facilities. At present, there are two national key laboratories for "photoelectric material and technology" and "biological control", two professional laboratories of national key disciplines of "breeding, nutrition and disease control of aquatic economic animals" and "plant genetic engineering", as well as the national research institute of new medicine (tumor-treating medicine) clinical testing center; five key laboratories designated by the Ministry of Education, namely, the Laboratory for Genetic Engineering, the Laboratory for Polymer, Composite and Functional Materials, the Ophthalmology Laboratory, the Laboratory for Clinical Nephrology, and the Research Laboratory for Tumor genome and Tumor-treating Medicine; there are four key research bases in the humanities designated by the Ministry of Education, namely the Institutes of Research in Marxist philosophy and Chinese Modernization, Institute of Research in Logic and Cognitive, Center of Research in Hongkong- Macao-Pearl River delta, and Center of Research in Administration; three key laboratories designated by the Department of Health, namely the Ophthalmology Laboratory, the Laboratory for Clinical Nephrology, the Laboratory for Assisted Circulation. Besides, there are eight key laboratories designed by Guangdong province.

The University library has a collection of 4,350,000 volumes. In addition to the traditional services of circulation of books and periodicals, X-copying and quick printing, it also offers various forms of electronic information service, such as internet browsing, database retrieval on compact disk, network database retrieval, DIALOG retrieval on line, UnCover service of special subjects and electronic document transmission, making it convenient for the faculty and students to access electronic resources promptly and efficiently. The library of Sun Yat-sen University has been assigned by the Ministry of Education as the center for storing documents of higher education in South China, one of the 7 centers of the higher education document guarantee system in China. Campus networks on considerably large scale have been established on the three campuses of the University, and the connection speed between the campuses has reached gigabites; fiber cable connection has been established between teaching buildings, office buildings, student dormitories and staff residences, with a total length of cable exceeding 75 kilometers and over 20000 users and 15000 hooked-up computers. The scale of campus network and the number of users are ranked first among universities and colleges in South China, and the campus network is one of the networks in the country that cover the widest area, with the largest scale, the most advanced technology, and the fastest outlet speed, laying a good foundation for raising the overall level of teaching, research and management.

The university has four comprehensive affiliated hospitals, namely, the First University Hospital, Second University Hospital (Sun-Yat-sen Memorial Hospital), Third University Hospital and fifth University Hospital (Zhuhai Hospital), as well as Sun Yat-sen Ophthalmology Center (including the Ophthalmology Hospital), the Center of Prevention and Cure of Cancer (including the Cancer Hospital), and Guanghua Stomatological Hospital.

Sun Yat-sen University is located in Guangdong, neighboring Hongkong and Macao, and is active in international academic exchange. The merge with Sun Yat-sen University of Medical Science has brought a wider range of fields in international exchange. The University has established academic exchange with more than 100 well-known universities, academic institutes and societies in countries and areas of America, Canada, Japan, Australia, England, France and Germany, and has signed exchange agreements with 40 of them. Since reform and opening-up, the alumni at home and abroad have given Sun Yat-sen University vigorous supports by donating money for teaching, research and residential buildings, instruments and apparatus; for all kinds of books and reference and for establishing awards. The amount of all kinds of donation reaches more than 4.5 hundred million yuan.

Characteristics and splendid achievements

Striking characteristics in education have been developed in almost 80 years of the history of Sun Yat-sen University, of which the most outstanding are being open, scientific and revolutionary.

Sun Yat-sen university was founded for the purpose of training revolutionaries. Dr. Sun Yat-sen's mottos of "Serving the public" and "We have not succeeded in revolution and should continue to endeavour" have been encouraging everyone in the University. Leading officials of the previous times all attached importance to education of patriotism and personal integrity, emphasized the national spirit, and cultivated ideas of the state and ethics. Following Dr. Sun Yat-sen's example and taking his revolutionary ideas as the guiding theory in running the school, the university has graduated large quantities of excellent talents and fostered a fine tradition of shouldering the responsibility of defending the country and building the nation in the past 80 years. In his inscription to the university, Jiang Zemin, the General Secretary of the Party, called on the faculty and students to "carry on the revolutionary spirit of Dr. Sun Yat-sen.", which was indeed an appropriate summary of the revolutionary tradition of Sun Yat-sen University.

The history of Sun Yat-sen University has been closely associated with a batch of professors and scholars of great masters, whose ideas and methods of study and research have fostered the fine tradition of emphasizing the "scientific nature". In the school tenet of the university, it has been set as the goal to develop teaching and research, and to strive to be a famous university since the beginning. The scientific laws of stressing the foundation, quality, and talent training have become the tradition of teaching and learning in Sun Yat-sen University. Professor Chen Yinqie, a renowned master of the national classics, was proficient in a dozen languages, including Sanskrit, and had made outstanding accomplishments in history, religion, linguistics, textual research, cultural study and the fields such as Chinese classical literature. Mr. Chen devoted himself to doing genuine studies and did not seek undeserved reputation, insisting on "three don'ts" in academic research: don't lecture according to the book; don't mimic what others have talked; and don't repeat what is said before even by himself. He persisted in lecturing on the problems that were discovered in academic research, as well as the exploration and thinking in the process of solving these problems. The scientific style of teaching by concrete examples and the discreet manner in research, the courage in exploring new academic fields have left a lot of spiritual wealth to the scientific shrine of Sun Yat-sen University.

Guangzhou has always been the gateway of China's opening to the world and the bridge connecting the inland with the oversea. This is the geographical background of the tradition of "openness" in Sun Yat-sen University. Ever since the time of preparing to set up Guangdong University, 31 out of the 35 members of the preparatory committee were experts in advanced international education returned from the overseas. Dr. Sun Yat-sen asked the university to study "mainly the changing science and technology in the world." The university established an overseas branch in Lyons, France at the beginning and implemented openness by recruiting well-known teachers nation-wide. Since reform and opening, the university has been adhering to the tradition of openness by promptly adjusting the structure of specialties and training patterns so as to accommodate to the fast growth of the socialist market economy and the economic development in Guangdong. The blending of the tradition of elite education with corporate culture enables graduates of Sun Yat-sen University to adapt to the society comparatively quickly and be accepted by the society. By employing a batch of overseas scholars to teach in the university, the communication and connection between traditional education and advanced international education has been strengthened. The completion of the Zhuhai campus also embodies the tradition of "openness" in running the university. The Zhuhai campus has become the window of cooperation and exchange between foreign universities and Sun Yat-sen University as well as the higher education in Guangdong and a new starting point of running a well-known high-level international university.

In the recent few years, students in Sun Yat-sen University have made a lot of achievements. For example, 9 doctoral theses from the university are selected to be included in the 100 excellent doctoral theses nation-wide in the past years. In 2003, the team representing Sun Yat-sen University won the silver award of the 27th computer programming championship of college students, and another team won the champion at the 4th investment planning ACCA open championship of college students held in Hong Kong. In 2002, the student debate team of the university won the champion at the national debate contest of college students, and was qualified to represent China at the international debate contest of college students in 2003. In 2002, the team representing the university beat other well-known universities in Asia and won the champion at the Asian competition of business initiation planning, and took away all champions in the individual events. The University ranked No. 1 in the second batch of assessment of MBA teaching.

Sun Yat-sen University, the well-known Chinese university created by Dr. Sun Yat-sen, has entered the fast lane of accelerated development. To build the University into a high-level research-type comprehensive university ranked on top of universities in the country and with greater influence in the world, all faculties, employees and students are filled with confidence in inheriting the tradition and moving ahead, and are of one heart and one mind in marching forward with time and exploiting and creating the new world. In the new century, Sun Yat-sen University is sure to march victoriously and to attain ever-splendid successes.

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