The Open University of China () is a

national National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

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 ...

headquartered in Beijing, China. Established in 1978 by an executive order of

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping also Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Teng Hsiao-p'ing; born Xiansheng (). (22 August 190419 February 1997) was a Chinese statesman, revolutionary, and political theorist who served as the paramount leader of the People's R ...

, the university is directly affiliated with and sponsored by the

Ministry of Education of China The Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China is a constituent department of the State Council, responsible for basic education, vocational education, higher education, and other educational affairs throughout the country. The ...

. The Open University of China features higher education opportunities to adult citizens nationwide through

distance learning Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance; today, it usually involves online ...

and face-to-face sessions. As a higher education system, it consists of one headquarters, 45 branches, and 3735 study centers in urban and rural areas across the country. The university was known as the China Central Radio and TV University () from 1978 to 2012. Currently, most courses are blended between face-to-face sessions and distance learning. The university now has 14 industry schools and 11 specialized colleges. In fall 2022, it offered 10 bachelor's majors, 53 bachelor's (transfer in with an associate's degree) majors, and 75 associate's majors, including

science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

agricultural science Agricultural science (or agriscience for short) is a broad multidisciplinary field of biology that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. Professio ...

pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medication, medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it ...

nursing Nursing is a health care profession that "integrates the art and science of caring and focuses on the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and human functioning; prevention of illness and injury; facilitation of healing; and alle ...

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

management Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a Government agency, government bodies through business administration, Nonprofit studies, nonprofit management, or the political s ...

, and

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 ...

. The university was also named the Seniors University of China by the Ministry of Education in 2023. The current president is Dr. Ge Daokai, Sun Lüyi, Li Linshu and Yan Bing are vice presidents, and Zhang Hui is party secretary of the university.

Colleges & schools

As of 2023, the university operates 14 industry schools (行业学院), 11 specialized colleges (专门学院), and 8 internal research institutes.

Professional Schools

* School of Mechanical Engineering (机械工业学院) * School of Automotive Training (汽车学院) * School of Metal Casting(铸造学院) * School of Cybersecurity (网络空间安全学院) * School of Software (软件学院) * School of Life and Health (生命健康学院) * School of Petroleum and Chemical Engineering (石油和化工学院) * School of Textile Manufacturing (纺织学院) * School of Postal Service (邮政学院) * School of Coal (煤炭学院) * School of Social Work (社会工作学院) * School of Insurance (保险学院) * School of Tourism (旅游学院) * School of Property Management (物业学院)

Specialized Colleges

* Bayi College (八一学院) * Air Force College (空军学院) * Military Shield College (军盾学院) * Disabled Education College (残疾人教育学院) * Overseas Chinese College (华侨学院) * Mining College (矿业学院) * Marine College (海洋学院) * Auxiliary Police Staff College (辅警学院)

Research Institutes

* Theory and Policy Research Institute (理论与政策研究所) * Educational Institution and Management Research Institute (办学机构与管理研究所) * International and Comparative Education Research Institute (国际与比较教育研究所) * Teacher Development Research Institute (教师发展研究所) * Education Quality Assurance Research Institute (教育质量保证研究所) * Curriculum and Teaching Research Institute (课程与教学研究所) * Learning Science and Technology Research Institute (学习科学与技术研究所) * Resources and Services Research Institute (资源与服务研究所)

Memberships

Asian Association of Open Universities (AAOU)
Joined in 1993
International Council of Distance Education (ICDE)
Joined in 1997

References

About the Open University of China
* China's Radio & TV Universities and The British Open University: A comparative study. Wei Runfang. Yilin Press 2008. * World Bank'

External links

* Distance education institutions Universities and colleges in Haidian District Educational institutions established in 1979 1979 establishments in China Distance education institutions based in China Open universities {{China-university-stub