Zhengzhou University of Light Industry (ZZULI) established in 1977 was originally affiliated to the Ministry of Light Industry of China, and then to the People’s Government of Henan Province since 1998. It is jointly built by the People’s Government of Henan Province and the State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau as a featured key university in Henan Province, and an International Characteristics Pilot University in Henan Province. At present, ZZULI has Kexue Campus, Dongfeng Campus and Yuzhou Campus with a floor area of over 2,200 mu. The University now has about 2,300 faculty members, more than 36,000 full-time undergraduate and graduate students, over 2.5 million Chinese and foreign paper books and more than 8.77 million e-books. ZZULI has a National Model Digital Archive, and has been known as a model university of smart campus in Henan Province.
Since its establishment, ZZULI has been acting on the university motto of “nothing is too difficult for the willing mind” in the socialist direction of education. In the spirit of being “plain, pragmatic, and prudent”, the University gives full play to its strength in the Central Plains to contribute positively to the high-quality development of the industry, as well as the local and national economy and society.
Continuous advance in strengthening the university through talent cultivation. ZZULI has five international academicians from the Canadian Academy of Engineering, the Norwegian Academy of Science etc., and employs six academicians as strategic scientists of the discipline. More than 300 talents at ministerial and provincial-level, including Changjiang (Yangtze River) Scholar, National Outstanding Professional and Technical Talents, winners of National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, the recipient of Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation the Science and Technology Innovation Award, personnel selected for the National Hundred and Thousand and Ten-Thousand Talent Project, experts obtaining the special allowance of the State Council, famous teachers of the national “Ten Thousand Plan”, Central Plains Scholars, so on and so forth. In the whole faculty members, more than 800 teachers have senior titles and nearly 1000 teachers have doctorates. Besides, the University has two national scientific and technological innovation teams, 39 provincial scientific and technological innovation teams, and 17 provincial teaching teams.
Increasing highlight of discipline and specialty characteristics. ZZULI has three featured key discipline groups of Henan Province, namely food science and engineering, intelligent manufacturing of electrical equipment, and hydrogen energy science and technology. It has 22 provincial key disciplines. Engineering, Chemistry and Agricultural Science are now among the top 5‰ of ESI global ranking; Materials Science and Computer Science are now among the top 1% of ESI global ranking. ZZULI has two postdoctoral research stations, four first-level disciplines authorized to offer doctorate degrees, 17 first-level disciplines authorized to offer master’s degrees, 17 professional categories of master’s degree authorization, and owns 10 joint PhD programs offered together with well-known universities at home and abroad, as well as 72 undergraduate programs, covering nine disciplines, i.e., engineering, science, literature, arts, economics, management, law, teaching and agriculture. Currently, ZZULI offers 25 national first-class undergraduate specialties, ranking fourth among universities in Henan Province; 18 national first-class courses, ranking third among universities in Henan Province; 13 specialties that have passed the professional certification in engineering education, ranking third among universities in Henan Province; five national featured specialties and comprehensive reform pilot specialties; six pilot specialties of “Plan for Educating and Training Outstanding Engineers” issued by the Ministry of Education.
Overall improvement in the quality of talents. ZZULI has established a national innovation and entrepreneurship education-practice base and a national granted mass innovation space. The University’s students have put in excellent performances in national innovation and entrepreneurship competitions such as “Internet+”, “Challenge Cup” and “Youth Creation”. The University has ranked 73th in the National Academic Discipline Competition List from 2019-2023, which means it ranks second in all universities of Henan; in 2023, it has ranked 78th which means it ranks third in all universities of Henan. Since its establishment, the University has provided more than 150,000 excellent graduates to the country, and many titles have been awarded on it, including the “National University with Typical Experience in the Employment of Graduates”, “The Excellent Unit for Employment of Graduates from Regular Institutions of Higher Learning in Henan Province”, and “The Most Competitive Model University for Employment in Henan Province”. ZZULI is hailed as “the Cradle of Talent Training in China’s Battery Industry” and “the Whampoa Military Academy of the Tobacco Industry”.
Significant achievements in scientific and technological innovations. ZZULI boasts 72 national and provincial-ministerial scientific research platforms, presenting by Ministry of Education’s Key Laboratory of Cold Chain Food Processing and Safety Control, and Ministry of Industry’s Information Technology basic public service platform. In recent years, the University has undertaken more than 4,000 longitudinal and transverse scientific research projects including those of the National Science & Technology Pillar Program, National Key Research and Development Program, and programs supported by National Natural Science Foundation and National Social Science Foundation of China. It obtained six national science and technology prizes and more than 160 ministerial and provincial prizes. In the past five years, ZZULI has won a great number of awards for its scientific and technological progress, which ranked third among universities in Henan Province. It has been one of China’s top 100 universities for the contract amount of commercialization of scientific and technological achievements.
Increasing social service capability. In the field of Food Science and Engineering, breakthroughs have been made in the technological bottlenecks in quick freezing, meat, fruit and vegetable industries, boosting Henan to transform from the “Granary in the Central Plains” into the “National Kitchen” and the “Source of Worldwide Catering”; and breakthroughs in the key preparation technology of tobacco flavors facilitate high-quality development of the tobacco industry. In the field of Intelligent Manufacturing of Electrical Equipment, ZZULI has overcome the technical problems of multi-motor electrical system cooperative control, and made positive contributions to the building of “The Pillars of a Great Power”; breakthroughs were made in the technical bottleneck in the molding process of key basic parts of large equipment, and the results have been applied to major engineering construction at home and abroad; it has solved major technical problems in the integration of high-efficiency vehicle power system, and the results have been applied to the world’s largest bus enterprises and new energy commercial vehicle enterprises. The University has achieved breakthroughs in key technologies for the manufacturing of a series of fine chemicals and the development of new energy materials in the material science and engineering field, and the results have been applied to well-known enterprises in related fields in China; new wear-resistant alloys have been developed, and applied as key wear-resistant components to the “National New Heavy Machinery Project, engines and rail transit, etc.
Extensive international cooperation and exchanges. ZZULI is the first public undergraduate university in Henan Province to carry out Sino-foreign cooperative education projects. It has the earliest IELTS examination center in Henan Province, which was praised as “one of the best examination centers in China” by the British Embassy in China. It has been awarded the title of “Top Ten Famous Sino-foreign Cooperative Institutions of the Year” in China. ZZULI has co-organized ZZULI-OU Intelligent Engineering Joint Institute (ZZULI-OUIEJI) with Oakland University, and it has built ten international joint laboratories with well-known foreign universities. In addition, it has established extensive cooperation with more than 100 colleges and universities in over 30 countries, including the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, and Korea. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, together with world-famous universities such as the University of California, Riverside, Virginia Tech, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Griffith University, Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University.
The river is wide at full tide; a strong wind sends the sail surging forward. At a new historical starting point and under the leadership of Xi Jinping’s thought of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, ZZULI keeps in mind the original mission of cultivating talents for the Party and the country and adheres to the “four orientations” (i.e., targeting the global sci-tech frontiers, serving the main economic battlefields, striving to fulfill the significant needs of the country, and benefiting people’s lives and health). It will give full play to the functions of talent training, scientific research, social service, cultural heritage and innovation, and international exchange and cooperation to build a high-level light industrial university and write a more gorgeous new chapter!
(Note: The above data is as of October 2024)
