On 24 October 1952 the Ministry of Education approved a new school, and the Beijing Institute of Aeronautics opened the next day as what the university calls the first aeronautics and astronautics institution of higher education founded after 1949. It was assembled from the aeronautics department of Beijing Institute of Technology, Tsinghua’s School of Aeronautical Engineering and the aeronautics department of Sichuan University. The school became Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics in April 1988, and Beihang University has been its English name since 2002.
The Xueyuan Road campus in Haidian District covers 98.4 hectares, the Shahe campus in Changping District 97.2 hectares and the Hangzhou International Campus in Yuhang District 66.73 hectares. The university is affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, was included in Project 211 and, in 2001, Project 985, and belongs to the Double First-Class Construction programme. It states that 100 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering have come from the university.
ShanghaiRanking’s 2026 subject ranking puts the university first in aerospace engineering, second in instruments science and technology and third in transportation science and technology, while it sits in the 101-150 band of the 2026 Academic Ranking of World Universities.
Domains taught:
Aerospace, AI and Machine Learning, Automation, Bioengineering, Bioinformatics, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Ecology and Sustainability, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Fluid Dynamics, Industrial Design, Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Materials, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Microbiology and Genetics, Nanotechnologies, Optics, Physics, Process Control, Project Management, Robotics, Signal Processing, Software Engineering, Statistics, Structural Engineering, Telecommunications, Thermodynamics, Transportations
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Strong ties with China’s aerospace and defense industries (e.g., AVIC, CASIC). International collaborations in aerospace research.
Research:
Aircraft Design & Propulsion, Spacecraft Technology & Applications, Advanced Materials for Aerospace, AI & Robotics, Quantum Sensing.
Famous Alumnis:
Qi Faren
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
2500
Current students***:
35000
Foreign students***:
N/A%
Cumulative former students***:
100000
Pros
Premier university for aerospace engineering, significant contributions to China’s space program, strong research focus.
Cons
Highly specialized in aerospace and defense, very competitive.
Best For
Top university for aerospace engineering, instrumentation, and computer science.
Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics is the most direct peer, a public university in Nanjing focused on aerospace engineering, aerospace-oriented mechanical engineering and control science.
Northwestern Polytechnical University, public and based in Xi'an, lists aeronautics, astronautics and marine science and technology among its main fields.
Harbin Institute of Technology in Harbin combines aerospace engineering with mechanical engineering and materials science as a public university.
Beijing Institute of Technology, in the same city, is a public university with mechatronical engineering and control science among its main fields, and its aeronautics department was one of the units that formed the Beijing Institute of Aeronautics in 1952.
National University of Defense Technology in Changsha, a public institution, joins computer science with aerospace science and technology and electronic fields.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
Moscow Aviation Institute in Russia is a public institute focused on aerospace engineering, aircraft engines and control.
Georgia Institute of Technology in the United States, based in Atlanta, lists engineering, computer science and aerospace among its main fields.
ISAE-SUPAERO in France is a public aerospace school in Toulouse covering aerospace and aeronautical engineering.
Cranfield University, a public university in the United Kingdom, concentrates on aerospace, engineering and management.
Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur in India is public, with computer science and aerospace engineering among its main fields alongside electrical engineering.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
What was Beihang called when it opened?
It opened on 25 October 1952 as the Beijing Institute of Aeronautics. Its motto is "Integrating Virtue with Brilliance and Combining Knowledge with Practice".
Which departments were combined to create it?
The aeronautics department of Beijing Institute of Technology, the School of Aeronautical Engineering of Tsinghua University and the aeronautics department of Sichuan University were combined in 1952. The earlier moves of aeronautics departments into Tsinghua and Sichuan took place in 1951.
How did the name change over time?
In April 1988 the institute became Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, a change the university describes as the step from a specialised engineering university to a comprehensive one. The English name Beihang University has been used since 2002.
Where are the campuses and how large are they?
The Xueyuan Road campus in Haidian District covers 98.4 hectares, and the Shahe campus in Changping District covers 97.2 hectares. The Hangzhou International Campus in Yuhang District covers 66.73 hectares.
Which subjects does it rank highest in?
The 2026 ShanghaiRanking subject results list aerospace engineering first, instruments science and technology second, transportation science and technology third, mechanical engineering eighth and automation and control ninth. The university as a whole is in the 101-150 band of the 2026 Academic Ranking of World Universities.
Which ministry and national programmes are linked to Beihang?
It is affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. It entered Project 211 and, in 2001, Project 985, and it was selected in 2017 for the Double First-Class Construction.
Aeronautics, Aerospace, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Robotics, Space
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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