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About University of Shanghai for Science and Technology

The University of Shanghai for Science and Technology (USST) is a municipal multidisciplinary key applied research-oriented university with engineering as its core, where engineering, science, economics, management, literature, law, art and other disciplines are well in coordinated development. USST has become a pilot unit for the construction of “a high-level local institution of higher education” in Shanghai.

The history of USST goes back to the University of Shanghai established in 1906 and the German Medical and Engineering School founded in 1907. In 1906, the Northern and Southern Baptists of the United States established the University of Shanghai on the shore of the Pujiang River. In 1907, Dr. Erlich Paulun, a German doctor, established Die Deutsche Medizinschule für Chinesen or German Medical School in Shanghai, to which an engineering school was added in 1912. In 1928, when Dr. Liu Zhan’en (1896-1938), an educator, patriot and social activist, served as its first Chinese president, the University of Shanghai was fully integrated into China’s national education system. In 1922, the Chinese and French governments jointly established the Institut Technique Franco-Chinois de Shanghai on the original site of the German School of Medicine and Engineering. After the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Invaders (July 7,1937-September 2, 1945), the Institut Technique Franco-Chinois de Shanghai merged with the National Advanced Vocational School of Mechanical Technology moved from Chongqing to Shanghai to establish the National Advanced Vocational School of Mechanics (National Advanced Mechanics for short). After the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, the relevant departments of the University of Shanghai were transferred and incorporated into various other universities in East China, whereas Shanghai School of Industrial Technology was founded on the original site of the University of Shanghai, which was later renamed Shanghai Institute of Mechanical Technology in 1959, Shanghai Institute of Mechanical Engineering (1960-1994), and East China University of Technology (1994-1996) respectively while the National Advanced Mechanics was reshuffled as Shanghai Advanced Vocational School of Mechanics (Shanghai Advanced Mechanics for short), later renamed Shanghai Advanced College of Mechanical Technology (1983-1996).

In 1996, East China University of Technology merged with Shanghai Advanced College of Mechanical Technology to form the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology. In 1998, the administration of USST was transferred from the National Ministry of Machinery Industry (1982-1987,1993-1998) to the City of Shanghai. In 2003, Shanghai Advanced College of Medical Instruments (which was plotted out to set up Shanghai University of Medicine & Health Sciences in 2015) and Shanghai Publishing and Printing College were both put under the management of USST.

There are altogether 17 schools, colleges and departments with more than 27,000 full-time students, including more than 16,000 undergraduate students and more than 10,000 graduate students. Of its 2,600 faculty & staff members, there are 10 academicians of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Chinese Academy of Engineering (adjunct academicians included), 66 national-level talents, 237 provincial or ministerial-level talents, 952 teachers with senior titles, and 375 doctoral supervisors.

Having relied upon, served, and spearheaded the development of industry for a long time, USST has grown up to be a backbone university in the fields of equipment manufacture, medical equipment as well as publishing and printing industry. The disciplines such as Power Engineering and Engineering Thermophysics, Optical Engineering, Management Science and Engineering have long held the leading position in the country; USST also has a profound industry foundation in the fields of medical devices, as well as publishing and printing. In recent years, USST’s discipline layout has been continuously prioritized, with currently 64 undergraduate programs, including 20 first-class national major construction sites and 13 first Shanghai municipal major construction sites, 8 first-class discipline doctoral programs, 29 first-class master’s degree programs, and 19 professional master’s degree programs and 6 centers for post-doctoral studies. USST has 19 national teaching platforms, 52 provincial or ministerial-level platforms, 7 national scientific research platforms and 44 provincial or ministerial-level platforms. Its five disciplines, namely Engineering, Materials Science, and Chemistry, Computer Science and Environmental/Biological Science have long ranked the top 1% of Essential Science Indicators (ESI) in the world.

USST is always ready to serve the local and national strategic needs by tapping the potentials of its 3 international labs of Future Optics, Intelligent Manufacturing, Medical Devices and Rehabilitation Engineering as well as its featured platform of Systems Management as the carriers to build its 6 first-class disciplines of Optical Engineering, Systems Science, Power Engineering and Thermophysics, Mechanical Engineering, and Biomedical Engineering as well as Management Science and Engineering, continuously supports its disciplinary development and pushes ahead its high-level university construction.

USST always adheres to the fundamental task of “Fostering Civic Virtue and Cultivating Talents”, carries forward the tradition of relying on industry and combining production, learning and research, and cultivates high-quality “engineering-oriented, innovative and internationalized” talents. USST implements the concept of “docking industry, transforming programs and guiding employment.” Undergraduate education emphasizes “being solid in foundation, wide in caliber and competitive in practice,” whereas postgraduate education stresses “being interdisciplinary, innovative and industry-related.” USST is the Ministry of Education’s “Program of Education and Training of Excellent Engineers University,” “National Undergraduates Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Plan Implementation University,” “National Talent Training Mode Innovation Experimental Zone”, “National Innovative Talents Training Demonstration Base,” “National In-depth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Education Reform Model University,” as well as the “National Innovation and Entrepreneurship Model University.”

One of the earliest institutions of higher education in mainland China to set up international cooperative programs in school-running, USST, which currently has nearly 1,000 international students, has established cooperative relations with more than 190 institutions of higher education in 37 countries and regions, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Japan, Australia and Ireland. It has so far established two Sino-foreign joint educational institutions, namely, the Sino-British College and Sino-German College. USST has been one of the vice director-general units of Shanghai – Hong Kong Universities Alliance.

Adhering to the strategy of coordinative development, USST has jointly established “Yangtze River Delta Higher Engineering Education Alliance” with Nanjing Tech University, Zhejiang University of Technology, Jiangsu University, and Anhui University of Technology; USST has joined hands with Shanghai Public Diplomacy Association to build the Institute of Public Diplomacy. USST has established the Shanghai High-end Medical Equipment Innovation Center with Shanghai Jiaotong University Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, United Imaging, and Microport; USST has been working together with such industrial leaders as Shanghai Institute of Process Automation & Instrumentation, Shanghai Power Equipment Research Institute Co., Ltd, Shanghai Electrical Apparatus Research Institute (Group) Co., Ltd, Shanghai Electric Cable Research Institute, Shanghai Research Institute of Materials, Shanghai Research Institute of E-toys, Shanghai Industrial Boiler Research Institute Co., Ltd and Central Institute of Shanghai Electric Group Company Ltd. to jointly establish “Shanghai Institute for Generic Technology of Machinery Industry” and “Shanghai Graduate School of Machinery Industry.” Besides, USST has carried out comprehensive strategic cooperation with such institutions and enterprises as Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), Shanghai Electric, Bright Food Group. Relying on the construction of its National Science Park and nearly 40 technology transfer offices in the Yangtze River Delta, USST is cooperating with Yangpu District to promote the transfer and commercialization of findings and achievements in science and technology, industry incubation, the development of the innovative neighborhood around USST campuses, and friendly partnership with Baoshan District, Qingpu District, Songjiang District, Huangpu District and other cities such as Suzhou, Taizhou in innovation platform, talents cultivation.

Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese characteristics for a New Era, USST fully implements the spirits of 20th National Congress of CPC, closely centers on the objectives and tasks set by the Eighth Party Congress of the University to make reforms and innovation, forge ahead with perseverance, and strive to build the university leading in industries and technological progress as soon as possible in order to build it into a first-class science and engineering university with remarkable features.