The University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) is a public university in Hefei, Anhui, China. It is owned by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and co-funded by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Ministry of Education of China, and the Anhui Provincial Government. It is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction.
The university was founded in Beijing by the Chinese Academy of Sciences in September 1958. In the beginning of 1970, the university moved to Hefei during the Cultural Revolution. The university has 13 schools, 11 national research platforms, 8 science-education integration colleges, and 5 joint cooperative institutes with local governments. The university is a member of the C9 League.
Contents
History
The university was founded in Beijing by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in September 1958. The director of CAS, Guo Moruo was appointed the first president of USTC. USTC's founding mission was to develop a high-level science and technology workforce, as deemed critical for the development of China's economy, defense, and science and technology education. The establishment was hailed as "A Major Event in the History of Chinese Education and Science." CAS has supported USTC by combining most of its institutes with the departments of the university. In 1959, USTC was listed in the top 16 national key universities, becoming the youngest national key university.
At the beginning of 1970, the university moved to Hefei during the Cultural Revolution.
In 2012, USTC and the National University of Defense Technology signed a strategic agreement to cooperate on quantum computing research at a ceremony attended by Pan Jianwei and Yang Xuejun.
Administration
Chang Jin (常进), President
Shu Gequn (舒歌群), Party Secretary
Bai Chunli (白春礼), Honorary President
Presidents:
Guo Moruo, September 1958 – June 1978
Yan Jici, February 1980 – September 1984
Guan Weiyan, April 1985 – January 1987
Teng Teng, January 1987 – February 1988
Gu Chaohao, February 1988 – July 1993
Tang Honggao, July 1993 – June 1998
Zhu Qingshi, June 1998 – September 2008
Hou Jianguo, September 2008 – January 2015
Wan Lijun, March 2015 – June 2017
Bao Xinhe, June 2017 – October 2024
Chang Jin, October 2024 – present
Honorary President:
Zhou Guangzhao, August 1998 – August 2024
Present
Since its participation in the CAS Experimental Program of Knowledge Innovation, USTC has achieved a batch of results in the basic research of nano science and technology, quantum information science, life science research, fire science, and fire protection technology, polar scientific investigation and research, bio-mass clean energy research.
Rankings and reputation
USTC is generally considered one of the most competitive universities in the country, and consistently ranked among the top universities in Asia according to several major international university rankings. The joint THE-QS World University Rankings 2005 ranked USTC 4th in China (after Peking, Tsinghua and Fudan), 13th in Asia and 93rd in the world. The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2011 placed USTC 49th in the world, 7th in Asia and 2nd in China after Peking. It ranked 10th in Asia and 4th in Emerging countries & Mainland China in 2020 by Times Higher Education.
As of 2025, the Times Higher Education World University Rankings ranked USTC #6 in China, #11 in Asia and #51 in the world. The Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU), also known as the "Shanghai Ranking", placed USTC 39th in the world, 6th in Asia, and 5th in China. The 2026 US News Best Global Universities ranked USTC #59 overall in the world, #13 in Asia and #7 in mainland China. USTC is regarded as one of the most reputable Chinese universities by the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings where they ranked 51–60th globally.
USTC was ranked # 6 in China, # 12 in Asia and #62 worldwide in 2025 in terms of aggregate performance from the four most widely observed university rankings (THE+ARWU+QS+US News).
The Nature Index Research Leaders 2025, which measures the largest groups of papers published in 145 leading high-quality science journals, ranked USTC the No.1 university in China and the Asia-Pacific region, and 2nd in the world among the global universities (after Harvard). In 2025, USTC was ranked 59th globally by the Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers for World Universities, with "Natural Science" & "Engineering"-related fields ranked 3rd and 8th, respectively, in the world.
In the 2024 ARWU Global Ranking of Academic Subjects, the USTC had seven disciplines in the world's top 20, 17 disciplines in the world's top 50 and 21 disciplines in the world's top 100.
Nature Index tracks the affiliations of high-quality scientific articles and presents research outputs by institution and country on a monthly basis.
Laboratories
Only the National Laboratories, State Key Laboratories, and Key Laboratories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences are listed below, among which the National Laboratories have the highest qualification. USTC is the only university in mainland China with two National Laboratories.
National Laboratories (2)
The National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory
Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale (under construction).
State Key Laboratories and Ministerial Level Units
The State Key Laboratory of Fire Science (SKLFS)
National High Performance Computing Center (Hefei)
National Engineering Laboratory of Speech and Language Information Processing
The State Key Laboratory of Particle Detection and Electronics (Under Construction)
Mengcheng National Geophysical Observatory
Microsoft Key Laboratory of Multimedia Computing and Communications, Ministry of Education
Key Laboratories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Key Laboratory of Bond Selective Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Key Laboratory of Wu Wenjun Mathematics, Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Key Laboratory of Quantum Information, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Schools and departments
Highlights: USTC set up the first graduate school in China in 1978 to effectively cultivate its postgraduate students.
School for the Gifted Young
School of Mathematical Sciences
School of Physical Sciences
Department of Modern Physics
Department of Astronomy
Department of Physics
Department of Optics and Optical Engineering
Physics Experiment Teaching Center
School of Chemistry and Materials Science
Department of Chemistry
Department of Chemical Physics
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Department of Polymer Science and Engineering
Chemical Experimental Teaching Center
School of Nuclear Science and Technology
School of Life Sciences and Medicine
Molecular Biology and Cell Biology
Neurobiology and Biophysics
Systems Biology
Biomedicine and Biotechnology
Notable people
Alumni
Di Wei, research fellow at the University of Cambridge
Notable faculty members
Zhou Guangzhao (1929–2024) – Famous theoretical physicist, Vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, Honorary President of USTC at present.
Yan Jici (1901–1996) – Pioneer of Modern physics research and education in China, former Vice-President, President, and Honorary President of USTC.
Qian Linzhao (1906–1999) – Famous physicist and educator, pioneer of scientific history and education in China, former Vice-president of USTC.
Hua Luogeng (1910–1985) – Pioneer of modern mathematics research and education in China, former Chairman of the Department of Mathematics and Vice-president of USTC.
Guo Moruo (1892–1978) – A Chinese author, poet, historian, archaeologist, the first president of USTC.
Meng Xuenong (1948–) – Former Mayor of Beijing, and former Governor of Shanxi Province
Qian Xuesen (1911–2009) – Father of missiles of China, former Chairman of the Department of Mechanics with USTC.
Zhao Zhongyao (1902–1998) – Pioneer of modern particle physics research and education in China, one of the first in the world to find positrons, former Chairman of the Department of Modern Physics with USTC.