East China Normal University (ECNU) is a
public university
A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by the state or receives significant funding from a government. Whether a national university is considered public varies from o ...
in
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
, China. It is affiliated with the
Ministry of Education
An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
and co-funded with the Shanghai Municipal People's Government. The university is part of
Project 211
Project 211 ( zh, c=, links=no, s=211工程) was a higher education development and sponsorship scheme of the government of China for "preparing approximately 100 universities for the 21st century", initiated in November 1995. There were 115 ...
,
Project 985
Project 985 () was a higher education development and sponsorship scheme of the Chinese central government for creating world-class higher education institutions, initiated in May 1998. There were 39 universities selected to be part of this ...
, and the
Double First-Class Construction
The World First-Class Universities and First-Class Academic Disciplines Construction (), together known as Double First-Class Construction (), is a higher education development and sponsorship scheme of the Chinese central government, initiated ...
.
It was formed in 1951 by the merger of the Great China University (est. 1924) and Kwang Hua University (est. 1925) and originated from the
St. John's College founded in 1879. As of 2020, ECNU is organized into 22 schools, colleges, and institutes, located in two campuses throughout
Minhang and
Putuo.
History
Origins
East China Normal University traces its roots to the formation of
St. John's College (later to become St. John's University) in 1879, and its heritage has had a deep influence in the development of Chinese modern higher education.
In 1879, St. John's College was founded by
William Jones Boone and
Joseph Schereschewsky,
Bishop of Shanghai, by combining two pre-existing Anglican colleges in Shanghai. In 1905, the college became St. John's University and was registered in Washington D.C. in the United States. It was the first institution to grant
bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...
s in China, starting in 1907.
After the
May Thirtieth Movement
The May Thirtieth Movement () was a major labor and anti-imperialist movement during the middle-period of the Republic of China era. It began when the Shanghai Municipal Police opened fire on Chinese protesters in Shanghai's International Set ...
in 1925, some academics and students left the
St. John's University, later forming the private Kwang Hua University to support the
labor
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
and anti-
imperialist
Imperialism is the maintaining and extending of power over foreign nations, particularly through expansionism, employing both hard power (military and economic power) and soft power ( diplomatic power and cultural imperialism). Imperialism fo ...
movement during the middle period of the
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
era.
In 1924, after a
student protest
Campus protest or student protest is a form of student activism that takes the form of protest at university campuses. Such protests encompass a wide range of activities that indicate student dissatisfaction with a given political or academi ...
at the
Xiamen University
Xiamen University (XMU; ) is a public university in Siming, Xiamen, Siming, Xiamen, Fujian, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Pro ...
in Fujian some academics fled north to Shanghai, where they established what became the Great China University (also known as Daxia University).
Establishment of the university
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, East China Normal University was officially formed in 1951 by the merger of the Great China University and the Kwang Hua University, and was joined at the same time by a number of faculty members from
Fudan University
Fudan University (FDU) is a public university, national public university in Yangpu, Shanghai, Yangpu, Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education and is co-funded with the Shanghai Municipal ...
,
Tongji University
Tongji University is a public university located in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Tongji is one of the ...
,
University of Shanghai and East China PE Academy, making it the first national teacher’s training university of the People's Republic of China. This was done in part due to the government's desire to pool these institutions' resources into a single, stronger entity, cultivate talents with professional knowledge, and promote the development of education in the country.
In the 1950s, the Chinese government regrouped the country's higher education institutions in an attempt to build a Soviet-style system. Under this policy, most of the faculties from
Saint John's University,
Zhejiang University
Zhejiang University (ZJU) is a public university, public research university in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and D ...
,
University of Shanghai,
Utopia University
Utopia University, known in Chinese as Datong or Tatung University, was a private university in Shanghai. It was established in March 1912 by a group of former Tsinghua faculty members led by Hu Dunfu, and became one of the most reputable priv ...
, and
Aurora University were incorporated into ECNU to form a comprehensive multi-disciplinary university. Some of the academics at the
Tongji University
Tongji University is a public university located in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Tongji is one of the ...
and
Jiaotong University were also transferred to ECNU.
In March 1959, ECNU was authenticated as one of the first 16
National Key Universities
National Key Universities () is a term previously used to refer to universities recognized as prestigious and which received a high level of support from the central government of the People's Republic of China. The term is no longer in official u ...
in China, and this status was reaffirmed in 1978. From 1972 to 1980 (during the
Cultural Revolution
The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...
in
mainland China
"Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...
), five schools including ECNU were merged to create Shanghai Normal University, and in 1980 its original name was resumed.
1980 to present
In June 1986, ECNU was one of the first 33 higher education institutions authorized, by the State Council, to establish their
graduate schools
Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor' ...
. In 1996, ECNU passed the prerequisites appraisal and became one of universities sponsored by the major national program "
Project 211
Project 211 ( zh, c=, links=no, s=211工程) was a higher education development and sponsorship scheme of the government of China for "preparing approximately 100 universities for the 21st century", initiated in November 1995. There were 115 ...
". In 2006, the Ministry of Education and Shanghai Municipality signed into a partnership for co-sponsoring the development of the university, qualifying ECNU as a member of the "
Project 985
Project 985 () was a higher education development and sponsorship scheme of the Chinese central government for creating world-class higher education institutions, initiated in May 1998. There were 39 universities selected to be part of this ...
".
ECNU is now under the direct auspices of the Ministry of Education. The university sponsors or supervises publication of more than 20 academic journals and periodicals. The library collection exceeds 4,000,000 volumes. 25 primary or secondary schools are affiliated to the university.
International partnerships
The university has established strategic cooperative partnership with universities such as
École Normale Supérieure
École or Ecole may refer to:
* an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by Secondary education in France, secondary education establishments (collège and lycée)
* École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing i ...
and its group in France, the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
and
Cornell University
Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...
in USA,
Tokyo University
The University of Tokyo (, abbreviated as in Japanese and UTokyo in English) is a public research university in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1877 as the nation's first modern university by the merger of several pre-westernisation era ins ...
and
Kobe University in Japan, and the
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...
in Australia, the
University of Warwick
The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded in 1965 as part of ...
in the UK, etc. It has been carrying out academic exchanges with over 150 universities and institutions of Great Britain, France, Germany, Japan,
the United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, Canada, Australia,
Korea
Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...
, and Russia, etc. ECNU plays host to a
CIEE satellite campus, where 100 American college students study each semester. The university also runs an Online College of the Chinese language in collaboration with the
National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language (NOCFL), which is the first of its kind to be established in the country with over 5,800 students in 137 countries and regions. In 2008, it set up the
NOCFL Study and Training Base for International Chinese Teachers.
* In 2002 the
Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris, the
École normale supérieure de Cachan, and the
École normale supérieure de Lyon set up a Master's-PhD programme at East China Normal University in Shanghai. An ENS campus is housed in the ECNU at the Aspiring Researchers Institute and at the Franco-Chinese Advanced Studies Institute.
* In 2007, the
EMLYON Business School opened the official EMLYON Asia Campus in the heart of the ECNU campus.
* In 2008, the
Cornell-ECNU Center for Comparative Culture was jointly funded by
Cornell University
Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...
and ECNU.
* China's first Sino-American university –
New York University Shanghai
New York University Shanghai (NYU Shanghai; legal name registered as Shanghai New York University) is a joint-venture university in Pudong, Shanghai, China. It was established in 2012 under a partnership between East China Normal University and N ...
(NYU Shanghai) – was co-established by
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
and ECNU and was approved by the Ministry of Education in early 2011.
Study China Programme
Along with several other Chinese universities, East China Normal University has hosted the United Kingdom (UK) government-funded
Study China Programme for a number of years. In this programme, students from UK institutions spend one to two summer months studying
Mandarin Chinese
Mandarin ( ; zh, s=, t=, p=Guānhuà, l=Mandarin (bureaucrat), officials' speech) is the largest branch of the Sinitic languages. Mandarin varieties are spoken by 70 percent of all Chinese speakers over a large geographical area that stretch ...
and
Chinese culture
Chinese culture () is one of the Cradle of civilization#Ancient China, world's earliest cultures, said to originate five thousand years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia called the Sinosphere as a whole ...
at a university in China. The programme is organised by the
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...
and is fully funded by
UK government
His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. bodies, such as the
Department of Business, Innovation and Skills. Its purpose is to strengthen ties between UK university students and China, in particular as relatively few British students enroll in degrees in China. The programme has increased relations between ECNU and numerous leading UK universities.
Diplomats' Program
Sponsored by Shanghai Municipal Education Commission and Shanghai Foreign Affairs Office, the Diplomats' Program has been organized by ECNU since 2011. In this program, consular officials from over 20 countries spend two months during summer studying at East China Normal University.
Research
State key laboratories
*State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research
*State Key Laboratory of Precision Spectroscopy
Key laboratories of provincial level and ministerial level
*Key Laboratory of Brain Functional Genomics, Ministry of Education
*Key Laboratory of Geography-Information Science, Ministry of Education
*Shanghai Institute of Brain Functional Genomics
*Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology
[East China Normal University](_blank)
, China.
*Shanghai Key Laboratory of Green Chemistry and Green Chemical Process
*Shanghai Key Laboratory of Urbanization and Ecological Restoration
*Shanghai Key Laboratory of Trustworthy Computing
Key research bases in humanities and social science
*Institute of Curriculum and Instruction
*Institute of Modern Chinese Thought and Culture
*Center for Russian Studies
*Center for the Study of Chinese Characters and Their Applications
*Institute of Schooling Reform and Development
*Center for Modern Chinese City Studies
Joint Research Centre
*
Cornell-ECNU Center for Comparative Culture
*
KUL
Kul or KUL may refer to:
Airports
* KUL, current IATA code for Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia
* KUL, former IATA code for Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport (Subang Airport), Malaysia
Populated places
* Kul, Iran, a village in Kurdist ...
-ECNU Sino-Euro Culture Research Center
*ECNU-
UBC Joint Research Core Group on China in Modern World
*Intercultural Education and Communication Research Center (with
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany.
The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...
)
Rankings and reputation
ECNU has always been ranked the top two or three among the mainland Chinese universities in Education and Training according to the most recent
QS World University Rankings by Subjects and
Academic Ranking of World Universities by Subjects.
In 2021, it was ranked 37th globally in the
''Times Higher Education Rankings by Subjects'' in "
Education
Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...
", which is historical strengths of the university as suggested in the name "
Normal". East China Normal graduates employability rankings placed at # 151-200 in the world in the 2017 QS Graduate Employability Rankings. Globally, East China Normal University is regarded as a competitive university with a good reputation
Chinese universities by the ''
Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings'' where it ranked 151-175th.
Notable people
Alumni
Writers
*
Chen Danyan: Writer
*
Dai Houying: Writer
*
Ge Fei: Writer, Professor of literature at
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...
*
Mu Shiying: Writer
Academics
*
Yu Lizhong: Chancellor of
New York University Shanghai
New York University Shanghai (NYU Shanghai; legal name registered as Shanghai New York University) is a joint-venture university in Pudong, Shanghai, China. It was established in 2012 under a partnership between East China Normal University and N ...
*
Wang Xingyu: President of
East China University of Science and Technology
The East China University of Science and Technology (ECUST; ) is a public university located in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education. The university is part of Project 211 and the Double First-Class Construction.
...
(March 1994–July 2004)
*
Xi Nanhua: Academician of the
Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...
. Vice-President of
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
The University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS; ) is a public university headquartered in Shijingshan, Beijing, Shijingshan, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The university is part of the Double ...
*
Liu Boli: Academician of the
Chinese Academy of Engineering
The Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE, ) is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for engineering. It was established in 1994 and is an institution of the State Council of China. The CAE and the Chinese Academy of Sciences a ...
*
Stephen Cheng: Academician of the
National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American Nonprofit organization, nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. It is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), along with the National Academ ...
, United States
*
Joe Z. Tsien Joe Z. Tsien(钱卓) is a neuroscientist who pioneered Cre/lox-neurogenetics in the mid-1990s, a versatile toolbox for neuroscientists to study the complex relationships between genes, neural circuits, and behaviors. He is also known as the crea ...
:
Neuroscientist
A neuroscientist (or neurobiologist) is a scientist specializing in neuroscience that deals with the anatomy and function of neurons, Biological neural network, neural circuits, and glia, and their Behavior, behavioral, biological, and psycholo ...
, Georgia Health Sciences University
*
He Jifeng: Academician of the
Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...
and academic at ECNU
*
Yuan Zhongyi:
Archaeologist
Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
, praised as "the father of the
Terracotta Warriors"
In politics
*
Han Zheng
Han Zheng (; born April 1954) is a Chinese politician who since 2023 has served as the 11th Vice President of China, vice president of China. He previously served as the Vice Premier of China, first-ranking vice premier of China between 2018 and ...
:
Vice President
A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
of China,
Vice Premier of China, Member of the 19th
Politburo Standing Committee
The Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), officially the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is a committee consisting of the top leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) an ...
*
He Xian: Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel of the P.R.China
*
Chen Hao: Governor of
Yunnan
Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...
, China
*
Yin Yicui: Chairwoman of the Shanghai People's Congress
*
Li Yuanchao
In business and media
*
Daniela Anahi Bessia: Celebrity performer for the
China Central Television
China Central Television (CCTV) is the State media, national television broadcaster of China, established in 1958. CCTV is operated by the National Radio and Television Administration which reports directly to the Publicity Department of th ...
,
Hunan Television
Hunan Television or Hunan TV () is a state-owned provincial satellite TV station launched on September 29, 1970. It is currently China's second-most-watched television channel, second to China Central Television's CCTV-1, although Hunan TV has oc ...
,
Shanghai Media Group
Radio and Television Station of Shanghai (RTS), a Shanghai-based state media outlet, and its wholly owned subsidiary, Shanghai Media Group (SMG), represent one of the largest state-owned media conglomerates of the People's Republic of China, wi ...
, etc. , Culture and Entertainment
*
Jason Jiang: Founder of
Focus Media
*
Dong Qing: Television host
In sport
*
Liu Xiang: Gold medalist of 110-meter hurdles in the
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece.
The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...
Study abroad
*
Glenn Duffie Shriver: From
Grand Valley State University
Grand Valley State University (GVSU, GV, or Grand Valley) is a public university in Allendale Charter Township, Michigan, Allendale, Michigan, United States. It was established in 1960 as Grand Valley State College. Its main campus is situated on ...
, he did a study abroad program at ECNU.
Notable faculty members
*
Meng Xiancheng: Educator, the first president of East China Normal University.
*
Li Linsi: Educator and diplomat who has been recognized as one of the key figures in modern Chinese cultural and diplomatic history.
*
Shen Zhihua: Professor of history at ECNU, expert in the history of the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
, Sino-Soviet relations, and the
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
.
*
Lü Simian: Chinese historian, former professor of history at
ECNU.
*
Shi Zhecun: Author, former professor of Chinese Language and Literature.
*
Hu Huanyong: Demographer, forefather of modern Chinese demography and the founder of China's population geography.
*
He Jifeng: Computer scientist, member of the
Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...
.
*
Ghil'ad Zuckermann
Ghil'ad Zuckermann (, ; ) is an Israeli-born language revivalist and linguist who works in contact linguistics, lexicology and the study of language, culture and identity.
Zuckermann was awarded the Rubinlicht Prize (2023) "for his researc ...
: Linguist, revivalist.
Mael Ejiogu Philanthropist, founder of th
Happy Feet movement
Alumni associations
*East China Normal University Alumni Association
*East China Normal University Alumni Association in US
*East China Normal University Alumni Association in North California
East China Normal University Alumni Association in North California
China.
See also
* No. 1 High School Affiliated to East China Normal University
* No. 2 High School Attached to East China Normal University
No. 2 High School of East China Normal University is a public secondary school located in Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China ...
* East China Normal University Press
References
External links
Official website
Official Facebook page
NYU Shanghai(上海纽约大学)
{{authority control
1951 establishments in China
Universities and colleges established in 1951
Universities and colleges in Shanghai
Teachers colleges in China
Project 985
Project 211
Plan 111