Founded in 1921 by Tan Kah Kee, a Chinese patriotic expatriate businessman in Singapore, the university has been perennially regarded as one of the top academic institutions in Southern China, with strengths in mathematics, chemistry, oceanography, economics, management, law, communication and political science.
As of April 2023,[update] over 45,000 students are enrolled at Xiamen University, including more than 21,000 undergraduates, over 19,000 master's students, and above 5,000 doctoral candidates.[2]
Xiamen University is proactive in international exchanges and collaboration. It has forged partnerships with 263 universities abroad and engages in substantial exchanges with 53 globally-renowned institutions. In July 2014, the groundwork for the Xiamen University Malaysia campus was initiated, marking it as the first Chinese university to pioneer an independent campus overseas.[2]
Panoramic view of Xiamen University, with new campus in the foreground and the original campus near the beach
In 1919, Tan Kah Kee, a Chinese expatriate in Singapore, businessman, investor, and philanthropist, donated then 4 million dollars to endow Amoy University in the city of Amoy (former romanization of 'Xiamen' until 1970s). When the university was founded in 1921, there were no more than 20 faculty members and just 98 students.
At the 1926 Sesquicentennial International Exposition in Philadelphia, United States, Amoy University was one of five institutions selected to participate in an exhibit on education in China, representing the country's higher education system.[3]
National university period
In 1937, Tan transferred administration of the university to the Nationalist government, and the institution became a national university.[4]
Statue of Mr. Tan Kah Kee, in front of his memorial hall located in Xiamen University main campus .Furong LakeJiannan AuditoriumStatue of notable mathematician Chen Jingrun (陈景润)
In 1938, at the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War, the university was temporarily relocated to Changting in western Fujian to escape Japanese invasion of Chinese coastal regions.
In 1946, after the war, the university moved back to Xiamen and resumed normal operations.[5]
In 1952, it was transformed into a comprehensive university embracing both arts and science.[6]
In 1963, it was designated as a key university in China.
In 1995, Xiamen University was selected to participate in Project 211, a Chinese government's initiative to provide increased financial resources for the country's most promising universities.[7]
In 2000, the university was selected for 985 Project, a national and local government initiative to provide funding for facilities construction and faculty hiring to bolster China's top universities.[7]
On January 25, 2013, the Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia submitted an invitation letter to Xiamen University to establish a branch campus in Malaysia.
On July 3, 2014, the foundation of Xiamen University Malaysia Campus was laid near Kuala Lumpur.
On February 22, 2016, Malaysia Campus officially opened.[8]
In September 2017, the university was recognized as a Class A institution in the Double First Class University Plan, a Chinese government initiative to cultivate a group of elite Chinese universities into "world-class" institutions by 2050.[9]
International cooperation
Xiamen University has maintained a global presence since its creation in 1921, attracting students from overseas Chinese communities in Southeast Asia. The institution established an "Overseas Correspondence Courses" program in 1956 and accepted its first foreign students in 1981.[10] Xiamen University now has an extensive portfolio of international collaborations, including an International Cooperative Program for Innovative Talents funded by the China Scholarship Council,[11] and global exchange and cooperation relationships with over 300 universities.[12] It has established 16 Confucius Institutes with partner institutions in 13 countries.[12]
In 2011, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak began high-level discussions about creating a Malaysian branch of Xiamen University.[13] Subsequently, in 2015 the Xiamen University Malaysia Campus was established. Known as "XMU Malaysia," the institution has been described as "historic" and is notable as the "first ever large-scale international branch" of a Chinese university.[14] Professor Wang Ruifang was named the first chancellor of XMU Malaysia.[13]
On May 23, 2016, Xiamen University sent a delegation to the Tokyo Institute of Technology in Tokyo, Japan to meet with leadership and professors. The delegation's objective was to discuss the institutions' strategies for commercializing research findings, fostering university-industry collaboration, and encouraging international students to learn about local language and culture.[15]
On November 18, 2016, Xiamen University and Cardiff University in Wales, United Kingdom initiated a "strategic partnership" including a program for co-supervision of doctoral students, and £1.2 million in seed funding for "collaborative research projects" to benefit the economy of Wales.[16] Subsequently, a delegation from Cardiff University visited the Xiamen University School of International Relations to explore possible areas of research collaboration and student exchange.[17]
The main campus of XMU is located in Siming District on Xiamen island, covering an area of 167 hectares. It is situated at the foothills of mountains, facing the ocean and surrounded by Xiamen bay. It mainly houses such academic divisions as the Humanities and Arts, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, and Engineering and Technology.[20]
The scope and level of its campus high-speed information network is rated first among all universities in China and has become one of the main nodes of CERNET2.[21]
Haiyun campus
The Haiyun Campus is part of the main campus, located near the Pearl Bay, south end of Xiamen, adjacent to Xiamen Software Park. The School of Software, School of Information Science and Technology, School of Mathematics Science are located in the campus.
Zhangzhou campus
Zhangzhou Campus is located in Zhangzhou China Merchants Economic and Technological Development Zone (CMZD), Zhangzhou, covering an area of 171 hectares. It houses XMU Tan Kah Kee College, the Institute of Industrial Technology and other platforms for scientific and technological innovation.[22]In addition, the college actively organizes students to innovate and start businesses.[23]
Xiang'an campus
In September 2012, Xiamen University began operations at its Xiang'an Campus, located 34 kilometers from the main campus. The three stated goals of the new campus are to provide facilities for "newly developing disciplines and applied subjects" such as bioscience and energy, to establish "innovation platforms for applied sciences," and to house the southern headquarters of the Confucius Institute.[24]
Currently, the Xiang'an Campus hosts over 10,000 students and faculty from ten schools: the Overseas Education College (which serves international students), the Medical College, the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the School of Life Sciences, the School of Public Health, the Nursing Department, the College of Earth Sciences, the College of Environment and Ecology, the School of Energy Research, and the School of Aerospace Engineering.[25]
Upon the invitation of the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education to set up a branch campus in Malaysia, Xiamen University accepted the offer and thus, Xiamen University Malaysia (XMUM) was born in 2015.
In keeping with the vision of our founder Mr. Tan Kah Kee, XMU began in earnest to build our first offshore campus in Malaysia and became the pioneer university from China to establish a branch campus in Malaysia. XMUM aspires to become a university with a distinct global outlook, featuring first-class teaching and research, and embracing cultural diversity.
Xiamen University has been consistently regarded as one of the top academic institutions in Southern China, with strengths in economics and management, fine arts, law, chemistry, journalism, communication, mathematics and political science.[38]
^ ab"Hallmarks". Xiamen University 90th Anniversary Celebration. Xiamen University. Archived from the original on 4 April 2013. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
^ ab"学校简介-厦门大学". xmu.edu.cn. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
^"厦门大学法学院". law.xmu.edu.cn. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
^Aizenstatd, Najman Alexander (Fall 2010). "International Law in China: The Xiamen Academy of International Law" (Special China Issue). International Law Quarterly, Florida State Bar: 26. SSRN1724504. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
Higher education and universities in China Class A institutions in bold. Class B institutions in italics. The remaining institutions are Double First Class Discipline Universities.
