Brief Introduction
South-Central University for Nationalities (SCUN), founded in 1951 as a college for nationalities, is a comprehensive university under the direct administration of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission.
1. History
South-Central University for Nationalities is a comprehensive university founded in 1951 and the former name was South Central College for Nationalities. In March 2002, the school adopted the current name. As one of the six national higher education institutes for ethnic groups in China, SCUN is committed to innovation in higher education for ethnic groups and thus has achieved a rapid and comprehensive development. Everyone in SCUN, led by a wise and united leadership, is making great effort for the comprehensive development of the school to improve its teaching and learning conditions, enhance its education quality, construct a harmonious campus and ultimately make SCUN an outstanding university for ethnic groups with its own distinguishing features. SCUN is well on its way to a better future.
2. Overview of Campus
Located by the coast of beautiful South Lake in Wuhan, China's central metropolis, SCUN boasts a campus of 1554 mu with a construction area of some 1 million square meters. The library has a collection of 2.8 million volumes of books. The Ethnographic Museum on the campus is the first of its kind in universities in China. The modern buildings with ethnic styles lie in the shades of green trees and beautiful flowers all the year round. With a serene environment, especially a view of a mirror-like lake and green hills, and the fragrance of osmanthus flowers all over, the university is an ideal place for study, research and living.
SCUN has a full-time enrolment of some 26,000 students from all 56 ethnic groups in China, including doctoral candidates, master degree candidates, undergraduates and preparatory students. The students come from 31 provinces or regions, among which SCUN enrolls students qualified for “first-tier universities” in National College Entrance Examination in 9 provinces or regions, namely Hubei, Hunan, Mongolia, Xinjiang, Guangxi, Tibet, Yunnan, Ningxia and Shanxi. Ethnic minority students make up 60 percent of the total.
3. Excellent Faculty
Among the faculty and staff of approximately 2000 personnels, about 1300 are teachers, 89 percent of whom hold doctoral or master certificates. Altogether there are 750 professors or associate professors actively engaged in teaching and research in different academic fields, among whom 450 are doctor’s or master’s supervisors. In addition, 4 teachers are enlisted in national New Century Talents Project, 29 enjoy special government allowance from the State Council, and 34 are accredited as ministerial or provincial experts.
4. Discipline Construction
At present, SCUN provides 82 specialties for the undergraduates in 10 disciplines, 121 master degree programs and 7 doctor programs. In addition, there are 1 post-doctoral research station and 4 under-construction doctor programs sponsored by Hubei Province government. The university possesses 9 ministerial or provincial First-level Key Disciplines, 2 under-construction First-level Key Discipline, 4 Second-level Key Disciplines, 5 National Characteristic Specialties (under- construction), 7 Provincial Brand Specialties, 23 Excellent Courses at national or provincial levels, 12 Experimental Teaching Demonstration Centers at national or provincial levels, and 33 research centers or laboratories at ministerial or provincial level. The total value of experimental instruments and apparatuses amounts to 240 million CNY (or 38.7 million US dollars).
5. Scientific Researches and Great Achievements
In 2008, SCUN was entitled to recommend excellent undergraduates excused from examination to study for Master’s degree. During the years from 2012 to 2014, SCUN faculty and staffs have undertaken 1538 scientific research projects, among which there are 217 national ones and 418 provincial ones. So far, they have won 73 awards at ministerial or provincial levels, published 191 monographs and about 2,300 academic papers indexed by SCI, CSSCI, etc., and they have been granted 73 patent rights. In order to meet the increasing need of talent cultivation for the rapid growth of China's market economy and the construction of harmonious society, SCUN has taken the quality-oriented education as its top priority by offering more specialties and imparting profound knowledge to develop the students' practical abilities and cultivate their creative ideas. With the inspiration of the university motto, namely, “BE A NATURALLY EASY-GOING PERSON WITH SERIOUS BELIEF AND KNOWLEDGE,” the students' over-round development is fully encouraged. So far, some 110,000 students have graduated from SCUN who have made great contributions to the economic development and social construction in many ethnic areas throughout the country.
6. Great Prospect
Recent years witnessed rapid overall development in SCUN. In 2001 and 2006 respectively, SCUN was awarded A by the Ministry of Education after the dynamic evaluation of undergraduate education. In Sep. 2003, it became a jointly-construction university by State Ethnic Affairs Commission and Wuhan Municipal Government. In May 2005, it was honored as “National Model for Ethnic Unity and Progress” by the State Council. In 2008, it was entitled “Civilization Unit” by State Ethnic Affairs Commission. In 2009, it was awarded as “National Advanced Unit in Employment of Graduates from Colleges and Universities”. In 2010, it won the third prize in “Campus Culture Construction Competition” by Ministry of Education. Since 2001, it has successively been awarded “Best Civilization Unit” by Hubei Provincial Government for 6 times.
At the new historical point, SCUN implements national educational and ethnic policies in its cultivation of talents. Sticking to the ideas of focusing on improvement of talents' quality and attaching importance to teaching and researches, SCUN is making efforts to develop into a first-class comprehensive university for nationalities, featured by its own advantages, high quality in education and outstanding and fruitful efforts in academic research.
7. International Communication and Cooperation
In accordance with the rapid development of China's higher education, SCUN has quickened its steps of opening up to the outside and established intercollegiate relationship with dozens of universities respectively in USA, Australia, Canada, Russia, Germany, South Korea, Japan and France. In 2008, SCUN and UW-P (University of Wisconsin – Platteville, USA) cooperatively established a Confucius Institute at UW – P. Every year teachers are sent abroad as lecturers or trainees, and foreign professors and experts are invited to work on the campus as well. In order to enhance the communication with those universities in education, SCUN also selects top undergraduates and graduates to pay a short-term visit or conduct long-term studies at the aforesaid universities.
The final information is subject to the University If there is any discrepancy!