Henan Normal University (HNU) is located in Xinxiang, a renowned city in northern Henan Province. Backed by the majestic Taihang Mountains to the north and facing the mighty Yellow River to the south, the University sits on the vast Muye Plain along the scenic Wei River. HNU is a key institution supported under China’s Plan for Revitalizing Higher Education in Central and Western China and a participating university in the Program of Introducing Talents of Discipline to Universities (“111 Plan”). It is jointly supported by the People’s Government of Henan Province and the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China, and has been recognized as an “Excellent” institution in the Undergraduate Teaching Evaluation organized by the Ministry of Education. It is also designated as a Henan Provincial Characteristic Backbone University and a university under Henan’s “Double First-Class” (Shuangyiliu) Initiative. The University has been honored three times with the title of National Civilized Unit and was selected for the Second National Civilized Campus program.

HNU has a rich historical background and a wealth of educational resources. The university traces its roots back to the Science Department of Zhongzhou University, which was established in 1923 (the precursor to National Henan University), and the Pingyuan Normal College, which was founded in 1951. It has undergone various transformations before being renamed Henan Normal University in 1985, including the Pingyuan Normal College (Xinxiang Campus), Henan Normal College (Xinxiang Campus) and Xinxiang Normal College. Over the past hundred years, the university has created the motto of “Cultivate Virtue and Extensive Learning, Aiming for the Highest Good”, the school spirit of “Uphold Virtue, Pursue Truth, Advocate Harmony, Achieve Innovation”, the teaching ethos of “Cultivate Learning, Set Models, Enlighten Wisdom, Enhance Character”, and the learning style of “Honesty, Diligence, Unity, Uprightness”. Moreover, the university has developed the spirit of Respect Civilization and Enlightenment, Uphold Integrity and Virtue, Embrace Simplicity and Seek Truth”, and has been renowned for its sound academic atmosphere, high-quality teaching, vibrant learning environment, and advanced pedagogy. It spans an area of 1,395,300 square meters with a built area of 1,100,200 square meters and houses over 3.43 million volumes of Chinese and foreign paper books as well as more than 10.46 million electronic books. It is the home to the exclusive Pavarotti Music and Arts Center in the world, as well as the largest and most diverse biological resources museum in Henan Province. Additionally, the university manages affiliated middle schools, primary schools, and kindergartens.

HNU offers a full range of disciplines across 12 major fields: Philosophy, Economics, Law, Education, Literature, History, Science, Engineering, Agriculture, Management, Arts, and Interdisciplinary Studies. The University comprises 27 schools/departments, 1 college (shuyuan), and 1 modern industry college, and offers 78 undergraduate programs. Among them are 34 national first-class undergraduate major construction sites and 23 provincial first-class undergraduate major construction sites. HNU is authorized to confer degrees through 30 first-level academic master’s degree programs, 26 professional master’s degree categories, 13 first-level academic doctoral degree programs, and 2 professional doctoral degree categories, and hosts 9 postdoctoral research stations. The University enrolls more than 50,000 full-time students. HNU has 2 National Discipline Innovation and Talent Introduction Bases (“111 Plan”), 4 Henan Provincial Characteristic Backbone (Category A) Disciplines, 1 Henan Provincial “Urgently Needed and Specially Required” Characteristic Backbone Discipline Cluster, and 25 Henan Provincial Key Disciplines (first-level). Seven disciplines—including Chemistry, Physics, Engineering, Materials Science, Environment/Ecology, Plant & Animal Science, and Mathematics—rank in the top 1% globally in ESI. Three disciplines, including Chemistry, Earth & Environmental Sciences, and Physics, have continued to appear on the Nature Index rankings of top disciplines among universities in mainland China.

Since its establishment, HNU has attracted many distinguished scholars, including Cao Liqing, Hao Xiangwu, Sun Xiangzheng, Zhao Xinwu, Zhao Jibin, Li Junfu, Yao Conggong, Wei Mingchu, Fan Yingchuan, Du Mengmo, Sun Zuoyun, Huang Dunci, Xu Mengying, Lu Jinsuo, and Lu Gongru. The University currently has more than 3,300 faculty and staff members. Among them are over 100 high-level talents, including academicians and recipients of major national talent programs and honors (such as National Distinguished Experts, National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, National Science Fund for Excellent Young Scholars, the Hundred Talents Program, Changjiang Scholars, and Zhongyuan Scholars). HNU has 2 Ministry of Education Innovation Teams, 3 national-level teaching masters, 2 national-level teaching teams, 1 national Huang Danian–style faculty team, and 1 recipient of China’s National Top 100 Excellent Doctoral Dissertation. According to recent evaluations of Chinese universities, HNU ranks among the leading institutions in Henan Province in terms of faculty academic level and performance.

Upholding the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education, HNU has achieved notable results in teaching and learning. The University is a participating institution in the national initiatives including the National Excellent Teacher Development Program, the National Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program for College Students, and the Excellent Agriculture and Forestry Talent Education and Training Program. HNU hosts 4 national-level and 10 provincial-level experimental teaching demonstration centers, as well as 3 national-level and 37 provincial-level virtual simulation experimental teaching projects. It has 1 national virtual teaching and research office pilot project and offers 30 national first-class undergraduate courses. The University has undertaken 102 projects under China’s national undergraduate teaching quality initiatives and has won 11 National Teaching Achievement Awards (in the most recent five award cycles). HNU students have achieved outstanding results in major national competitions such as the National “Internet+” Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, the “Challenge Cup” National Competition of Extracurricular Academic Science and Technology Works, and the “Chuangqingchun” National College Student Entrepreneurship Competition, and have received the China Youth Science and Technology Innovation Award. HNU students and alumni have also earned a bronze medal in Taekwondo at the Paris Olympic Games and won the Taekwondo World Cup team championship. In the arts, HNU has received China’s three highest national awards in the field—the Golden Bell Award (Music), the China Theatre Award-Campus Theatre Award, and the Lotus Award (Dance)—becoming the only university in China to have won all three.

Committed to innovation-driven development and social service, HNU has established 66 provincial-and ministerial-level (or above) research platforms, including a National Key Laboratory, a Henan Laboratory, a National-Local Joint Engineering Laboratory, Ministry of Education Key Laboratories, a National Medical Products Administration Key Laboratory, and a State Key Laboratory Cultivation Base for Cell Differentiation and Regulation jointly supported by provincial and ministerial authorities. In recent years, the University has led and undertaken major research projects, including major and key programs of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), the National Key R&D Program of China, and major and key programs of the National Social Science Fund of China, as well as projects under the NSFC Distinguished Young Scholars and Excellent Young Scholars programs. HNU has received high-level awards such as the National Innovation Pacesetter Award, the China Patent Gold Award, the Second Prize of the State Natural Science Award, the Second Prize of the State Science and Technology Progress Award, the Second Prize of the Ministry of Education Natural Science Award, and Outstanding Scientific Research Achievement Award in Higher Education (Humanities and Social Sciences). The University has published a large number of high-impact papers in leading journals, including Nature, Science, and Social Sciences in China. It has produced landmark achievements in areas such as fundamental mathematics, theoretical physics, green chemistry, bioengineering, drug discovery and development, environmental science, Central Plains culture, and oracle bone inscription studies of the Shang Dynasty, with some results reaching internationally advanced levels. A number of innovations with independent intellectual property rights—represented by anti-tumor and antiviral nucleoside drugs and separators for power lithium-ion batteries—have been industrialized. Azvudine, as China’s first Category 1 oral new drug approved for the treatment of COVID-19, has been approved for market launch.

HNU is committed to openness in education and to expanding international cooperation. Actively participating in the Belt and Road education initiatives, the University has established long-term partnerships with more than 100 high-level universities and institutions in nearly 30 countries and regions, carrying out diverse joint education programs and collaborative research projects. HNU runs five Sino-foreign cooperative education programs at the undergraduate and master’s levels, and has established a non-independent legal entity Sino-foreign cooperative institution—the Henan Normal University-Perpignan International Institute of Technology (China-France). The University also operates one Confucius Institute and two Confucius Classrooms in Pakistan and Thailand, and co-initiated with domestic universities the China–Russia Alliance of Universities for Culture and Arts, further enhancing its international engagement.

Through a century of perseverance and achievement, HNU has remained committed to its founding aspiration of cultivating outstanding talent and serving the nation through education, and to the mission of advancing China’s educational development. The University is dedicated to nurturing well-rounded socialist builders and successors with all-around moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic, and labor education. To date, HNU has educated and trained more than 300,000 graduates. Alumni include Chinese Academy of Sciences academicians Zhang Tongyi and Zhang Suojiang, as well as recipients of major national talent programs and honors, provincial and ministerial-level leaders, prominent entrepreneurs, and many outstanding principals of primary and secondary schools. Graduates are widely commended for strong political integrity, solid professional competence, rigorous work ethic, and outstanding achievements, bringing honor both to society and to their alma mater.

Entering a new era, HNU will continue to uphold Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, maintain the socialist orientation in running the University, and fulfill the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education. Staying true to its century-long founding mission and firmly bearing the responsibility of building China into a leading country in education, the University will focus on the goals and tasks set forth by the Seventh Party Congress of HNU, unite in purpose, pursue development through hard work and dedicated action, and strive to build a world-class university with distinctive strengths in teacher education.

(All data current as of October 2025.)