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About East China University of Political Science and Law

Founded on the site of the former St. John’s University in 1952, the East China University of Political Science and Law (ECUPL, formerly known as the East China Institute of Politics and Law) is among the first higher educational institutions established by the People’s Republic of China specializing in legal and political science education. Throughout its years of development, ECUPL has demonstrated remarkable resilience and strength to strive through difficulties, and has developed a distinctive identity in the national higher education landscape.

Greeting Address

In 1952, ECUPL was established on the campus of the former St. John’s University, where, with bells from the Taofen building ringing and waves of the Suzhou River rolling, the University has experienced ups and downs. Despite a difficult past, the long established traditions of ECUPL have been passed down and promoted. The spirit of ECUPL has been enhanced and highlighted. Since 1979 when the policy of reform and opening up brought about a new page in its history, ECUPL has advanced forward, striving to realize its dreams.

ECUPL has made numerous achievements. Along with its much improved conditions, the university has greatly expand­ed and its teaching standards have been raised vigorously. As “an oriental pearl in law education”, ECUPL not only shines brightly, but also has succeeded in developing from a single-disciplinary teaching college into a multi-disciplinary research university.

Being proud of the achievements we have made, we are also fully aware of the challenges confronting us and the important responsibilities we are shouldering. The vitality of ECUPL lies in reforming the past and building up the future while a pioneering, truth-seeking, innovative spirit is the life of the university. I believe that both the faculty and the students of the University will move forward together step by step, in the same way as the red brick and the green grassland of our new campus carry on the grace and dignity of our old campus.

Discipline Development

ECUPL offers a diversity of well-structured disciplines, with law as its pillar, which is developing steadily and enjoys a remarkable edge over other academic institutions. Over the past five years, ECUPL has scored several national firsts in the number of research projects funded or sponsored by the National Social Science Foundation of China (NSSFC) and the Ministry of Justice. It is also a leading university of political science and law in China in terms of the number of state-level government-sponsored major projects. In the academic evaluation conducted by the Ministry of Education in 2016, the discipline of law of ECUPL was rated as A class and the discipline of Political Science as B class. The discipline of law of ECUPL has continuously ranked top 10 among about 700 such disciplines in China.

Talent Cultivation

ECUPL is committed to nurturing inter-disciplinary law professionals with in-demand skills and innovative minds by leveraging its advantages in legal studies and through cross-disciplinary integration. Over the past five years, it has proudly maintained a remarkable graduate employment rate of over 95%, with most of its graduates actively taking leading roles in various sectors. From among its talented and successful graduates, ECUPL has selected 17 4 alumni leaders who are influential in the business, political, academic and art circles.

International Cooperation

Actively promoting international cooperation, ECUPL has entered into partnerships with more than 160 universities and academic institutions overseas. It has established 4 joint research centers with its partner institutions, namely, China-UK Research Center on Commercial Law, Institution of Global Financial Governance and Rule of Law, Center for Advanced Studies in Chinese-European Legal Governance and the Sino-American Research Center on an Aging Population, in cooperation with the University of Leeds, Queen Mary University of London, the University of Graz and John Marshall Law School respectively. Moreover, it has run various student exchange programs allowing for cross-recognition of academic credits with over 60 overseas colleges and universities. ECUPL is also eligible to receive international students sponsored by the Chinese Government Scholarship. It is one of only six Chinese universities approved by the Ministry of Education to offer the one-year English-taught Master’s program funded by the Scholarship for Youth of Excellence Scheme of China, and the first Chinese university whose academic credits are recognized by the American Bar Association. ECUPL is also the first Chinese university running the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Summer School.