About QAU
Founded in 1951, Qingdao Agricultural University(QAU) is a provincial university of Shandong Province of China. It was formerly known as Laiyang Agricultural College and among the first group of universities credited with rights to award bachelor degrees approved by Ministry of Education of China. QAU has always persisted in emphasizing agricultural science as her advantage and distinctive feature, and in the harmonious development of diverse branches including agriculture, sciences, engineering, economics, arts and management. At present, QAU has 21 colleges and one physical education department, offering 53 undergraduate programs and 31 master degree programs.
QAU now consists of two campuses: One is in Qingdao and the other is in Laiyang, with a total area of 222 hectares and the construction area of 813,000 square meters. The university has set up many perfect teaching practice bases both inside and outside the campuses. The present university has more than 1800 faculty and staff numbers, including 124 professors and 261 associate professors, and most of them have either doctor's or master degrees.
QAU has established 5 provincial key disciplines such as Animal Genetics Breeding and Reproduction, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Pomology and so on. In addition, the university has also 4 provincial key labs such as Lab of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Lab of Dryland Cultivation Technology, and one Research Center of Shandong Agricultural Bionics Applied Technology, and 22 research centers. Since 1978, QAU has been rewarded 8 National Awards, 65 Provincial and Ministerial Awards, among which 14 were 1st Awards. Especially noteworthy are the achievements of animal cloning technology and bionic pesticides projects. QAU ranks the 34th in the Actual Income List of the Chinese Higher Education Institutes from Science Achievement Transference.
QAU takes it as her responsibility to revive our nation and agriculture with science and education, and always serves the society actively and vigorously. Since the Tenth Five-Year Program, QAU has undertaken 849 scientific research projects and accomplished enormous social and economic effects. In 1999, the patent of Yinguo, an artificial simulated germicide, was transferred at the price of 5 million yuan. The technology of extracting polysaccharide from the fermented liquid of Maitake(also Polyporus Frondosus in Latin) was transferred at the price of 9 million yuan in 2002. In 2004, the producing and managerial right of a new variety of corn--LN3 outside Shandong Province was transferred at the price of 1 million yuan.
QAU gives priority to teaching and education, and has always being activated the campus culture of "Virtue, Aspiration, Diligence, Honesty". Being noted for her academic atmosphere and discipline. QAU manages to improve teaching quality continuously, by means of strict teaching and learning. The average passing rate in College English Test (CET-4) for undergraduates in this university exceeds that of the other universities in Shandong province and the top universities in China. Since 2001, 35% of the undergraduates have passed postgraduate entrance examination. The employment rate of graduates is over 90%.
QAU pays great attention to international collaborations and exchanges. It has established relationships with 42 foreign universities and institutes in 17 countries of the world, including the United States, Canada, South Korea and Germany. In recent years, research co-operation with developed countries and personnel training for developing countries have become two important features of the university. All these activities have undoubtedly stimulated the vigorous development of internationalized education and research in the university.
