Address: 483 Wushan Road, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
Agriculture, Veterinary Medicine, Forestry, Food Science, Life Sciences, Economics and Management, Engineering
South China Agricultural University is a public university in Guangzhou, in Guangdong province, China. It was established in 1909, and its former name was South China Agricultural College. The motto can be translated as cultivate virtue, learn widely, seek truth and innovate. The president is Liu Yahong, and the university belongs to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao University Alliance.
The university works on two main sites in Guangzhou. The urban campus covers 2.95 square kilometres, and the suburban campus 2.57 square kilometres, for a combined area of about 5.52 square kilometres. This space allows teaching farms, experimental fields and laboratories, which are essential for an agricultural curriculum. The public record gives coordinates of 23.158 degrees north and 113.348 degrees east.
The figures for the fall of 2017 show 42,982 students: 36,560 undergraduates and 6,301 postgraduates. The academic staff numbered 2,471 and the administrative staff 3,304. The budget reached 1.32 billion yuan in 2015. These figures may have changed, and applicants should check the current ones on the official pages.
The academic structure comprises 26 colleges and departments. The university offers 95 undergraduate programs, 107 master programs, 60 doctoral programs and 9 professional master degrees. It also awards a professional doctorate in veterinary medicine. This range confirms that the university reaches beyond crops and soils, and into food, forestry, economics and engineering.
The rankings give an idea of its place. U.S. News Best Universities 2023 placed it 702nd in the world, the Academic Ranking of World Universities 2023 in the 401 to 500 band, and CWUR 2024 608th. In the QS 2020 subject ranking for Agriculture and Forestry it stood 30th. Fees depend on the programme and the status of the student. Check the current tariff.
For an applicant, the first question is the campus. The urban and suburban sites host different colleges, and the teaching farms are on the suburban side. Teaching is mainly in Chinese, and international students should check the official pages for the programmes taught in English, the entry conditions and the scholarships available.
Domains taught:
Agriculture, Ecology and Sustainability, Engineering, Food Science, Life Sciences, Microbiology and Genetics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Member of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao University Alliance, urban and suburban campuses in Guangzhou.
Research:
Agriculture, veterinary medicine, forestry, food and life sciences.
Famous Alumnis:
N/A
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
2471
Current students***:
42982
Foreign students***:
N/A%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Leading agricultural university in southern China, 26 colleges and departments, 95 undergraduate programs, 60 doctoral programs, large campuses.
Cons
Specialised profile, teaching mainly in Chinese, campus split between urban and suburban sites.
Best For
Students interested in agriculture, food, forestry and life sciences in southern China.
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Most Similar Schools Locally
Think of Hainan University when agriculture, food science and ecology and sustainability is the priority: it has almost the same size, at about 46,629 students, and is also a public institution.
Guizhou University follows much the same lines as this university, with agriculture, ecology and sustainability and life sciences as common ground, and it has almost the same size, at about 47,944 students, and is also a public institution.
Where this university leans on agriculture, food science and life sciences, Yangzhou University does the same, and it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
Huazhong Agricultural University overlaps with this university on agriculture, food science and microbiology and genetics, so the two are easy to compare, and it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
Where this university leans on ecology and sustainability and life sciences, Yunnan University does the same, and it is slightly smaller, at about 31,141 students against roughly 42,982 here, and is also a public institution.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
University of Tasmania in Australia is the nearest foreign match on agriculture, food science and ecology and sustainability; it also offers mba programmes and covers astroscience and marine science as well.
Autonomous University of Barcelona in Spain shares the microbiology and genetics, ecology and sustainability and life sciences orientation of this university, and it covers computer vision and chemistry as well, and is slightly smaller, at about 37,166 students against roughly 42,982 here.
Abroad, University of Milan (Italy) covers agriculture, food science and microbiology and genetics in a comparable way, and it is also a public institution, and runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes.
For agriculture, ecology and sustainability and life sciences outside the home country, Laval University in Canada is a natural reference; it covers finance and optics as well, and has almost the same size, at about 38,000 students.
Stellenbosch University offers an international parallel to this institution, with agriculture, food science and life sciences as common ground; it also offers mba programmes and covers military and finance as well.
*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 South China Agricultural University?
In Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China.
When was it established?
In 1909.
What was its former name?
South China Agricultural College.
How large are its campuses?
2.95 square kilometres in the city and 2.57 in the suburbs.
How many students did it have in 2017?
42,982.
How many colleges and departments does it have?
26.
How many doctoral programs does it offer?
60.
Which alliance does it belong to?
The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao University Alliance.
How is it placed in the QS Agriculture and Forestry ranking of 2020?
30th.
What does it cost?
Fees depend on the programme and the status of the student. Check the current tariff.
Agriculture, Biology, Environment, Innovation, Research and 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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