Why Wuhan Polytechnic University

Wuhan Polytechnic University, located in Wuhan City of Hubei Province known as a “thoroughfare to 9 provinces”, was founded in 1951. This earliest school that was to cultivate professional personnel for the grain sector was built into an undergraduate institution approved by the State Council in 1980. It had been successively affiliated with the former State Ministry of Food, Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Domestic Trade. In 1998, the pattern of co-construction by the central and local governments was practised and now the University is managed mainly by Hubei Province.

In the past 60 years’ practice, the University operates on the principle of “Basing itself on education, taking quality as the means of development, strengthening itself with talents, and highlighting its unique features.” Now the University has been developed into an influential multiversity at home, with the authority to grant master’s degrees. Engineering and Business are its main body. Technology, Management and Science constitute its main disciplines. Besides, Agro-product Processing and Transformation and other related disciplines in the field of commerce and trade circulation have distinct characteristics. Engineering, Management, Science, Humanities, Economics, Agriculture, Art and Law support one another and develop in coordination. Thanks to its outstanding achievements, the University passed the national assessment of undergraduate teaching by the Ministry of Education in December 2006.

The University now covers an area of over 900,000 square meters, with the building area of over 500,000 square meters. The library of the University, a provincial research-level unit of documentary collection, holds over 1.17 million volumes of paper literature, including 26 Chinese and foreign language electronic databases and 6 featured databases created by itself. The total value of the University’s teaching equipment is 130 million yuan. 6 provincial-level experimental teaching demonstration centres have been built in the University and 120 practice bases built outside the University.

The University is divided into 13 shcools, 2 departments, and 1 Continued Education College, with 54 undergraduate specialties, including 4 state-level featured specialties and 7 provincial-level brand specialties. 8 first-class and 43 second-class disciplines are authorized to grant master’s degree, 4 fields authorized to grant Specialized Master’s degree of Engineering, 5 fields authorized to grant Specialized Master’s degree of Agrotechnical Extension, 3 disciplines authorized to build Doctor’s degree programs. Currently the number of full-time undergraduate and graduate students is over 13,400. There are 9 key disciplines, 1 innovative discipline with remarkable achievements, 1 superior discipline, and 3 featured disciplines in Hubei Province. There is also 1 key lab and 1 engineering research center respectively in the Ministry of Education, 2 key labs in Hubei Province, 2 provincial research bases for Humanities and Social Sciences, and 13 engineering technology research centers of the provincial (ministerial) level granted by National Ministry of Agriculture, National Ministry of Food and so on.

The teachers of the University are faithful to their educational tasks, fond of their students, and devoted to their studies. The full-time teaching staff is over 800, more than half of them with senior academic titles, 80% of them with doctor’s or master’s degrees. There are 29 state-level and provincial (ministerial)-level experts, 1 candidate for the National New Century BaiQianWan Talents Project, 1 selectee into the New Century Excellent Talents Support Plan in the Ministry of Education, 1 winner of Science and Technology Prize for Youth in Hubei Province, 7 candidates for provincial New Century High-level Talents Project, 1 national teaching master, 4 national excellent teachers, 3 teaching masters in Hubei Province, 4 provincial (ministerial)-level teachers of excellence. Now 11 positions are open to specially-appointed professors of the Hubei “Chutian Scholars program,” and 24 Chutian Scholars have been engaged. A group of influential experts and scholars at home and abroad, including Chen Huanchun, Guan Chunyun and other academicians, have assumed positions for visiting professors.

The University has made remarkable progress in scientific research. In recent 5 years, it has undertaken over 70 state-level projects, which include National 973-project, 863-project, National Natural Science foundation and National Social Science foundation, and more than 500 provincial (ministerial)-level scientific research projects. It has won over 40 prizes of provincial (ministerial)-level or above, including 5 prizes of national scientific and technological advancement and 3 prizes of outstanding achievements in Humanities and Social Sciences. It has published over 300 monographs and textbooks, and over 4500 academic theses, among which 960 have entered into “Three Major Indices” (SCI, EI and ISTP). The number of patents is 30 and the total amount of funding for scientific research is 240 million yuan. “Advanced Unit of Serving Hubei in Science and Technology” has been awarded to the University by Hubei Provincial Party Committee and Hubei Provincial Government.