About Hangzhou

Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang Province, is one of the most distinguished and beautiful cities in China. Marco Polo once declared it to be “the most beautiful and elegant city in the world”. Hangzhou was the capital of the Wu and Yue States in the 10th Century during the Five Dynasties Period, and had its political heyday in the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), when it served as the capital of China. Hangzhou is famous for its outstanding natural beauty and historical and cultural sites. Besides, Hangzhou is also a city of innovation. Many companies, including Alibaba, and start-ups are located in the innovation parks and incubator centers of Hangzhou. Recently, the G20 summit was hosted successfully in Hangzhou. 

West Lake, laid on the west edge of Hangzhou, is the symbol of Hangzhou. It looks like a sparkling pearl imbedded in between a blue smudge of mountains and a metropolitan city, with the zigzagging Qiantang River floating by like a silver ribbon. 

It has been named as a World heritage site, which clearly reflects Chinese philosophy and aesthetics and inspires park designing art profoundly in China and abroad. The West Lake landscape was initially developed in the 9th century during the Tang Dynasty. Now, after 12 centuries, it has finally become a treasure for the whole world.

Surrounded by mountains on three sides, the 3,322-hectare landscape is a national cultural icon enriched with beautiful scenarios and dramatic legends. After centuries of human efforts in shaping it, the area is appreciated as a marvelous combination of natural and artificial beauty. Covered with luxuriant vegetation, the area is composed of a water surface of 5.66 square kilometers, and five territorial zones divided by causeways, dotted with numerous halls, towers, terraces, pavilions, pagodas, grottoes and temples. 

Hangzhou is also a dynamic and high-tech modern city. Regarded as China’s silicon valley, Hangzhou is an emerging technological hub and home to the e-commerce giant Alibaba. Hangzhou has become the world's largest mobile payment city. Hangzhou also has a perfect bike rental network for Green Travel, and was rated as "the world's best public bicycle service" by BBC. After hosting the G20 summit in 2016, Hangzhou is gearing up for Asia's biggest sporting event, the 2022 Asian Games.

Just as there is paradise in heaven, there are Suzhou and Hangzhou on earth.

 About Zhejiang University

Located in the historical and picturesque city of Hangzhou, Zhejiang University is a prestigious institution of higher education with a long history. Qiushi Academy, the predecessor of Zhejiang University, was founded in 1897 and was one of the earliest modern academies of higher learning established in China. In 1928, the academy was named National Zhejiang University. During the war time in 1940s, Zhejiang University moved to Zunyi, Meitan and other places in succession and stayed in West China for seven years. In 1946, Zhejiang University returned to Hangzhou. In 1952, due to a nationwide restructuring of universities, Zhejiang University underwent a reshuffling of disciplines. Some departments merged into other universities and Chinese Academy of Sciences. The remaining departments were divided and developed to become 4 specialized higher education institutions, namely former Zhejiang University, Hangzhou University, Zhejiang Agricultural University and Zhejiang Medical University. In 1998, the four universities sharing the same ancestor merged to form the new Zhejiang University and set a new goal – to develop into a world-class university. In its 119-year history, Zhejiang University has always been committed to cultivating talent with excellence, advancing science and technology, serving for social development, and promoting culture, with the spirit best manifested in the university motto “Seeking the Truth and Pioneering New Trails”.

Zhejiang University is a comprehensive research university with distinctive features and a national as well as international impact. Research at Zhejiang University spans 12 academic disciplines, covering philosophy, economics, law, education, literature, history, art, science, engineering, agriculture, medicine, management and etc. With 7 faculties and 36 colleges/schools/depterment, Zhejiang University has 14 primary and 21 secondary national leading academic disciplines. 

Zhejiang University has long been holding the educational philosophy of putting people foremost, cultivating all-round competence in students, seeking the truth and pioneering new trails in search of excellence, and is committed to developing future leaders with an international perspective. Zhejiang University has turned out a large number of outstanding talents in its history. There are more than 200 alumni elected members of Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering. With educational thoughts advancing with the times, Zhejiang University paces the whole nation in educational reforms. Rich campus culture, advanced teaching facilities and a wide range of international exchanges create favorable conditions for students’development.

Zhejiang University focuses on assiduous study and research, and science and technological innovation. It has launched a number of international high-end academic platforms and gathered masters, scholars and high-level research teams in various disciplines. In recent years, Zhejiang University maintains a leading position in China in output indicators including publications, patents and etc., and has made abundant important achievements in science, technology, humanities and social sciences. Zhejiang University always takes initiative in catering for national and regional needs, and exerts itself to become an influential high-level source of innovation and a pool of talents. In 2015, research fund at Zhejiang University amounted to 3,316 milliom yuan. 

As of Jun. 2016, there are a total of more than 46,970 full-time students enrolled at Zhejiang University, including approximately 14,142 graduate students, 8,931 Ph.D candidates, and 23,897 undergraduates. In addition, there are about 5,849 international students currently attending Zhejiang University. Among its approximate 3,601 standing faculty members, 1,552 faculty members have title of professor. Other important facts and figures are as follows: 15 members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, 18 members of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 76 experts in State "1000-elite Programs", 41 chief scientists of national 973 projects, 120 Chair Professors in Cheung Kong Scholar Program, and 116 scholars awarded with National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars. With senven campuses, namely Zijingang, Yuquan, Xixi, Huajiachi Zhijiang, Zhoushan and Haining campus, Zhejiang University encompasses an area of 4,503,741 square meters with school buildings covering 2,047,856 square meters of floor space. The university library holds a collection of more than 6.83 million volumes. In addition, Zhejiang University has 7 high-level affiliated hospitals.

As a national university standing by River Qiantang, Zhejiang University is striving to build itself into an innovative comprehensive research university with a world-class status. Zhejiang University will be adhering to the spirit of seeking the truth and pioneering new trails, dedicating itself to creating and disseminating knowledge, inheriting and advancing civilization, serving and leading the society, and promoting national prosperity, social development and human progress.