Southwest University

Southwest University is a key comprehensive university directly under the Ministry of Education. It traces its origins to the Eastern Sichuan Teachers School, established in 1906, and is a key university under the national Project 211 and a participating university in the Project 985 Innovation Platforms for Advantageous Disciplines. Located in Beibei District, Chongqing, its campus lies at the foot of Jinyun Mountain, a national scenic area, beside the beautiful Jialing River. It covers more than approximately 8000 mu, with nearly 1.8 million square meters of buildings and forest coverage of 80%, and is widely known as a garden-like university.

The university offers a comprehensive range of disciplines covering 12 categories: philosophy, economics, law, education, literature, history, science, engineering, agriculture, medicine, management and the arts. It has 5 national key disciplines, 55 first-level disciplines, 22 postdoctoral research stations, 68 doctoral degrees and 161 master’s degrees; 1 professional doctoral degree category, 19 professional master’s degree categories, and 107 undergraduate programs. It has nearly 3000 full-time teachers, including more than 1800 professors and associate professors, counting those in the research appointment series. There are more than 100000 students of all types, including over 50000 full-time undergraduate and postgraduate students.

The university has developed distinctive strengths in teacher education and agricultural education. Education, psychology and agriculture are particularly strong. Its silkworm genome research is world-leading, while research in basic psychology, education and other disciplines leads nationally. It has produced many major research achievements, including natural no-tillage methods, a silkworm gene bank, research on ethnic education and psychology in southwestern China, and research on human time cognition.

The university has strong research capabilities. Its facilities include the Chongqing Beibei National University Science Park, 1 national key laboratory, 1 national engineering technology research center, 1 cultivation base for a national key laboratory jointly supported by the province and ministry, 10 key laboratories of the Ministry of Education or Ministry of Agriculture, 3 Ministry of Education engineering research centers, 3 Plan 111 innovation and overseas expertise introduction bases, 2 national field scientific observation and research stations, 2 Ministry of Agriculture scientific observation and experimental stations, 2 Ministry of Land and Resources field bases, 1 Ministry of Education key humanities and social sciences research base, and 13 Chongqing key humanities and social sciences research bases. Over the past five years, both the number of approved research projects and research funding have increased substantially, with annual growth of at least 30% in each.

Southwest University is an ideal place to study in China. It values international exchange and cooperation and has established long-term friendly partnerships with more than 200 universities and research institutions in over approximately 30 countries and regions. It began admitting international students in the 1950s. Every year, overseas students from more than 80 countries and regions come to pursue bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees or further study. Beibei, Chongqing, where the university is located, is an important part of Liangjiang New Area, China’s third national development and opening-up new area and the first in the inland region. Chongqing is the only centrally administered municipality in central and western China, an important strategic hub and industrial hinterland for the national Belt and Road and Yangtze River Economic Belt strategies, and the economic center of the upper Yangtze. It is one of the international metropolises with the greatest competitive potential. The Three Gorges of the Yangtze, Dazu Rock Carvings and spicy hotpot are world-famous. To attract more international students and reward those with excellent academic performance and conduct, the university recruits students supported by the Chinese Government Scholarship, Confucius Institute Scholarship and Chongqing Mayor’s Scholarship. It also offers its own Southwest University President Scholarship, New Silk Road Scholarship, Southwest University Outstanding International Student Scholarship and Southwest University International College Scholarship.