Address: 866 Yuhangtang Road, Xihu District, 310058 Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
Computer Science & Technology, Chemical Engineering, Materials Science & Engineering
Founded in 1897, Zhejiang University is a leading comprehensive research university in China, known for its strong programs in engineering, computer science, agriculture, and life sciences.
Zhejiang University is one of the largest universities in China, with about 60,000 students including graduate students, 4,200 staff and several campuses in and around Hangzhou. The Zijingang campus on Yuhangtang Road is the main site, with the older Yuquan, Xixi, Huajiachi and Zhijiang campuses in other parts of the city. About one student in ten comes from abroad.
The university was founded in 1897 as the Qiushi Academy. During the Second World War it moved across the interior and settled in Guizhou province, where the British scientist Joseph Needham, visiting in 1944, called it the Cambridge of the East. In 1998 it merged with Hangzhou University, Zhejiang Agricultural University and Zhejiang Medical University, which created the present comprehensive institution.
Computer science and technology is the best-known department, with a state key laboratory in computer-aided design and graphics, and chemical engineering and materials science are also strong. Agriculture and food science have a long history, and research areas now include artificial intelligence and robotics, biomedical engineering and environmental science. Hangzhou is the home of Alibaba, and the university works closely with the company; the research institute Zhejiang Lab was set up in 2017 by the provincial government, Zhejiang University and Alibaba.
The Worldwide Universities Network and the Association of Pacific Rim Universities are among its networks, and it has partnerships with Imperial College London and other European universities. Teaching is mainly in Chinese, and English-taught programmes are expanding for graduates and international students. Chinese students are admitted through the gaokao, while international applicants apply directly and fees are higher for them.
Hangzhou combines a lakeside setting with a booming technology economy, and rents are lower than in Shanghai or Beijing. Colin Huang, who founded the e-commerce platform Pinduoduo, studied computer science at the university. About 200,000 people have graduated from Zhejiang University.
Domains taught:
Aerospace, Agriculture, AI and Machine Learning, Astroscience, Automation, Bioengineering, Bioinformatics, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Ecology and Sustainability, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Fluid Dynamics, Food Science, Geotechnics, Industrial Design, Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Marine Science, 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:
Worldwide Universities Network (WUN), APRU member. Partnerships with institutions like Imperial College London, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Strong regional industry links.
Where this institution leans on aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology does the same, and it has almost the same size, at about 58,000 students, and is also a public institution.
On content, Sun Yat-sen University and this institution are close, as both teach astroscience, marine science and bioinformatics; it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral, and has almost the same size, at about 55,000 students.
Tsinghua overlaps with this university on aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics, so the two are easy to compare, and it is also a public institution and also offers mba programmes.
Sichuan University takes a similar route through food science, transportations and bioinformatics, and it is also a public institution, and runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes.
Guangxi University works in much the same fields, chiefly marine science, agriculture and food science, and it is smaller, enrolling about 38,000 students against roughly 60,000 here, and is also a public institution.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
On content, Osaka University in Japan and this institution are close, as both teach astroscience, marine science and aerospace; it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral, and is smaller, enrolling about 23,000 students against roughly 60,000 here.
Abroad, Warsaw University of Technology (Poland) covers aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics in a comparable way, and it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral, and covers metrology and quality as well.
A foreign alternative with a similar emphasis on aerospace, transportations and bioinformatics is Wrocław University of Science and Technology in Poland, and it runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes, and covers metrology and quality as well.
Beyond national borders, Università di Pisa stands out as a comparable school for astroscience, marine science and aerospace; it is slightly smaller, at about 50,000 students against roughly 60,000 here, and is also a public institution.
For a study option in Germany with a comparable spread of astroscience, agriculture and food science, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn is the reference point: it is smaller, enrolling about 38,000 students against roughly 60,000 here, and is also a public institution.
*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
Where is Zhejiang University?
The main Zijingang campus is at 866 Yuhangtang Road in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.
How large is ZJU?
About 60,000 students and 4,200 staff.
When was ZJU founded?
In 1897 as the Qiushi Academy. It took its present comprehensive form after a merger in 1998.
Why was ZJU called the Cambridge of the East?
Joseph Needham used the phrase when he visited the university in Guizhou in 1944, during the wartime relocation.
What is ZJU best known for?
Computer science, chemical engineering, materials science, agriculture and life sciences.
What is Zhejiang Lab?
It is a research institute created in 2017 by the provincial government, Zhejiang University and Alibaba, focused on intelligent computing.
What language is used for teaching?
Mainly Chinese, with English-taught programmes expanding at graduate level.
How do international students apply?
They apply directly to the university and fees are higher than for Chinese citizens. Check the admissions pages for scholarships and deadlines.
Which networks does ZJU belong to?
The Worldwide Universities Network and the Association of Pacific Rim Universities.
Is Hangzhou affordable for students?
Rents are lower than in Shanghai or Beijing, and the city has a strong technology economy.
Agriculture, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Innovation, Robotics, Sustainable Development
*: 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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