The predecessor of CUPL is Peking College of Political Science and Law founded in 1952 by the merger of disciplines of law, politics, and sociology of Peking University , Yenching University , Furen University and Tsinghua University . Mr. Qian Duansheng, the noted jurist and expert on political science, was its first president. Later in 1983, the school was renamed China University of Political Science and Law under the directive of the Central Government to “speed up the building of China University of Political Science and Law and make it the national center of political and legal education”. Comrade Deng Xiaoping inscribed the new name of the university.
After over 50 years of construction and development, in university there are currently 2 state key research bases of humanities and social sciences, 1 key laboratory under Ministry of Education, 1 Beijing research base of philosophy and social sciences, 1 mobile postdoctoral station, 18 doctoral programs, 45 master's programs and 17 undergraduate programs.
There are now altogether 18 schools (departments) under the university, namely, Law School, Civil, Commercial and Economical Law School, International Law School, College of Criminal Justice, Politics and the Public Administration School, Business School, Humanism School, School of Foreign Languages, School of Continuing Education, College of International Studies, School of Marxism, School of Sociology, School of Master of Law, School of American and Comparative Law, School of German and Comparative Law, School of International Confucianism, Department of Physical Education and Department of Science and Technology.
Over 20000 students are currently studying in CUPL with a teaching staff of more than 1690, including about 830 full-time teachers which include 510 professors/associate professors, 126 doctorate advisors and 420 master advisors. It is notable that the teaching and research areas of its legal faculty cover almost all the second-class disciplines of law.
The university now is in two locations, Xueyuan Road campus in Haidian District as the old one and Changping campus at the foot of the Corps Hills in Changping District as the new one, which was designated as a key project of the State's Seventh Five-Year-Plan in 1985. The university's current Secretary of the Party Committee is Professor Shi Yajun; the President is Professor Xu Xianming.
China University of Political Science and Law is the exchange center in law between China and the rest of the world. Since China 's reform and opening up, the university has established exchange and cooperative ties with over 70 universities from 20 countries and regions. It is currently home to over 750 overseas students from 18 countries and regions.