The origin of Yanshan University can be traced back to the Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) founded in 1920. In 1958, the Department of Heavy Machinery of HIT and its related specialties moved to the strategic industrial town of Fulaerji, Qiqihar in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province and was renamed the School of Heavy Machinery of HIT.
In 1960, the school became independent as the Northeast Heavy Machinery Institute, and in 1978, it was accredited as one of the eighty-eight national key institutions of higher learning. From 1985, it began to move southward to the historic resort city of Qinhuangdao, and completed the process in 1997 when it was accredited by the former State Education Commission and adopted the present name of Yanshan University (YSU).
The YSU campus covers an area of 330 hectares with a total construction area of nearly 1,000,000 square meters. At present, the university has a faculty and staff of 2700 members, including 1,700 teachers, of which 317 are professors (including 113 doctoral supervisors) and 381 are associate professors. The university has a student population of 37,000.
YSU has 5 postdoctoral research institutes, 6 disciplines and 35 sub-disciplines conferring doctoral degrees, 13 disciplines and 80 sub-disciplines conferring master degrees, including 15 masters of engineering programs, one Master of Public Administration (MPA) program, one Master of Business Administration (MBA) program, as well as 60 undergraduate programs. With such a wide range of programs, YSU can be seen as a multiversity emphasizing engineering studies but also giving great attention to liberal arts, sciences, economics, management, law and education.
YSU consists of 18 schools and 1 independent department: School of Mechanical Engineering, School of Material Science and Engineering, School of Electric and Electronic Engineering, School of Information Technology and Engineering, School of Economics and Management, School of Civil Engineering and Mechanics, School of Sciences, School of Humanities and Law, School of Foreign Languages, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, School of Fine Arts, School of Automotive and Energy Engineering, School of Postgraduate Studies, School of International Exchange, Li Ren School, School of Vocational Training, School of Continuous Education, the School of Defense Technology, and Department of Physical Education.
The university also understands the importance of international academic exchange and cooperation, and has conducted joint programs with institutions from the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Ireland, South Korea, Japan and other countries.
Possessing an innovative spirit, all of the 40,000 teachers and students have spared no effort in building Yanshan University into a well-known, multi-disciplinary university, excelling at engineering and heavy machinery and equipment. Firmly established in Hebei Province with a vision for the whole country and the whole world, YSU is on the road to a bright and promising future.