Jilin University (JLU)

Introduction

The Jilin University is a front ranking national university of the People’s Republic of China. Often abbreviated as JLU, the university is under the direct control of the China’s Ministry of Education. The Jilin University ranks among the top ten universities in China. It is one of the most prestigious universities included in China’s Project 985 as well as Project 211.

Location

The Jilin University is located in the city of Changchun , which happens to be the capital city of the Jilin province in the north eastern part of the People’s Republic of China. This key university is spanned across eight campuses in five districts of the Jilin province. There are altogether thirty nine colleges under the university that offers degrees in a wide array of eleven subjects ranging from philosophy, economics, law, literature, education, history, science, engineering, agriculture, medicine, and management.

Tracing the roots

The present Jilin University is a result of the merger of a number of colleges and universities in the past. The university’s roots can be traced back to 1946 when it was originally founded with the name of North East College of Administration in Harbin, Heilongjiang. By May 1948, the North East College of Administration merged with the Harbin University and was renamed as Northeast Academy of Science. Towards the end of 1948, the Northeast Academy of Science moved to Shenyang, Liaoning and restored its earlier name North East College of Administration. Again in 1950, it was renamed as the Northeast People’s University. It was shifted to the present address after the outbreak of the Korean War and in 1958 it was renamed as the Jilin University. In 2000, many institutions like the Jilin University of Technology, the Bethune Medical University, the Changchun University of Science and Technology and the Changchun Institute of Posts and Telecommunications merged with JLU. On August 29, 2004, the University of Military Logistics was amalgamated to JLU. The Zhuhai campus was established in 2003.

State-of-the-art infrastructure

The university possesses state-of-the-art infrastructure that includes five national level key laboratories and eight national bases for research on basic science. Besides there are five research bases for humanities and social science. The China Ministry of Education sponsors seven key laboratories functioning under the university. The other ministries of the Chinese Government also sponsor eleven other laboratories of the university. Several research projects in the field of automobile engineering, chemistry, computer science, electrical engineering and biology are being pursued under the university. The university also possesses more than fifty classrooms with multimedia facilities and also audio visual classrooms to facilitate language learning.

Well equipped Library

The university library boasts of a collection of 5.26 million books and it is one of the seven centers of China Academic Library and Information System (CALIS) Center in Northeast China. This library has also been officially given the status of being the library of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and World Bank. The university library also functions as s the Comprehensive Information Center of Liberal Arts of the Education Ministry, the only Foreign Scientific Text Book Center in Northeast China, and the National Humanities and Social Science Higher Education Books Import Center.

Changchun

Changchun is the capital and largest city of Jilin province, located in the northeast of the People’s Republic of China, in the center of the Songliao Plain. It is administered as a sub-provincial city including counties and county-level cities, with a population of 7,677,089 at the 2010 census under its jurisdiction. The city’s main urban area, including 5 districts and 4 development areas, had a population of 3,908,048 in 2010. The name, which means “Long Spring”, originated from the Jurchen language. Known as China’s Automobile City, Changchun is an important industrial base with a particular focus on the automotive sector. Apart from this industrial aspect, Changchun is also one of four “National Garden Cities” awarded by the Ministry of Construction of P.R. China in 2001 due to its high urban greening rate.

Changchun is a very compact city, planned by the Japanese with a layout of open avenues and public squares. The city is developing its city layout in a long-term bid to alleviate pressure on limited land, aid economic development and absorb a rising population. According to a draft plan up until 2020, the downtown area will expand southwards to form a new city center around Changchun World Sculpture Park, Weixing Square and their outskirts, and the new development zone

Climate

Changchun has a four-season, monsoon-influenced, humid continental climate (Köppen Dwa). Winters are long (lasting from November to March), cold, and windy, but dry, due to the influence of the Siberian anticyclone, with a January mean temperature of −15.1 °C (4.8 °F). Spring and fall are somewhat short transitional periods, with some precipitation, but are usually dry and windy. Summers are hot and humid, with a prevailing southeasterly wind due to the East Asian monsoon; July averages 23.1 °C (73.6 °F). Snow is usually light during the winter, and annual rainfall is heavily concentrated from June to August. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 47 percent in July to 66 percent in January and February, a typical year will see around 2,617 hours of sunshine, and a frost-free period of 140 to 150 days. Extreme temperatures have ranged from −33.0 °C (−27 °F) to 35.7 °C (96 °F)

Road network

Changchun is linked to the national highway network through the Changchun-Harbin Expressway, the Changchun-Jilin-Hunchun Expressway and the busiest section in the province, the Changchun-Jilin North Highway. This section connects the two biggest cities in Jilin and is the trunk line for the social and economic communication of the two cities.

Changchun is served by a comprehensive bus system-most buses (and the tram) charge 1 Yuan per ride. Private automobiles are becoming very common on the city’s congested streets. Bicycles are relatively rare compared to other northeastern Chinese cities, but mopeds, as well as pedal and even animal-drawn carts are relatively common.

Air

Changchun Longjia International Airport opened for passenger service on August 27, 2005

Academic & Department