Wenzhou Medical University (WMU) is a higher institution under the administration of Zhejiang Provincial Government. It can trace its origin back to the former Zhejiang Specialized Medical School established in 1912. In August 1958, the Second Zhejiang Medical College was established in Wenzhou as a branch of Zhejiang Medical College, whose name was later changed to Wenzhou Medical College in accordance with its location. In 2013 Wenzhou Medical College was officially renamed Wenzhou Medical University. In 2015, WMU was shortlisted as one of the co-development universities by the Ministry of Education, National Health Commission and Zhejiang Provincial Government. In 2017, it became a Priority Development University in Zhejiang Province.
WMU started its five–years undergraduate programs in 1958 and master’s programs in 1978, making it one of the first institutions in China authorized to confer master’s degree, and later also authorized to confer doctoral degree. Now WMU has 4 Primary Category Discipline PhD Programs (Clinical Medicine, Basic Medicine Science, Pharmacy, Biomedical Engineering) and 2 professional doctorate program in Clinical Medicine and Medical Technology, 11 Primary Category Discipline Master Programs (Clinical Medicine, Nursing, Traditional Chinese Pharmacology, Biology, Biomedical Engineering, Basic Medical Sciences, Chinese and Western Integrative Medicine, Pharmacy, Stomatology, Public Health and Prevention Medicine, Public Management), 7 Professional Master’s Programs (Clinical Medicine, Biomedical Engineering, Stomatology, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health, Applied Psychology), and Postdoctoral Scientific Research Mobile Stations under the Primary Category Discipline of Clinical Medicine and Pharmacy. WMU ranks 70th in the ESI Comprehensive Ranking of Chinese Universities, with 9 disciplines, i.e. Clinical Medicine, Pharmacology and Toxicology, Biology and Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Genetics, Materials Science, Chemistry, Neuroscience and Behavior, Immunology and Engineering ranking in the top 1% of the ESI global ranking, among which Clinical Medicine and Pharmacology and Toxicology ranks in top 1.112‰ of the ESI global ranking. WMU features 1 State National Key Laboratory, 1 State Engineering Technology Research Center, 1 State Engineering Research Center of National Development and Reform Commission, 1 State Key Laboratory co-built by the Ministry of Education and Zhejiang Province, 1 National Research Center for Clinical Medicine (Ophthalmology Diseases), 2 Collaborative Innovation Centers jointly built by the Ministry of Education and Zhejiang Province,1 Key Laboratory of the State Food and Drug Administration, 2 National International Science and Technology Cooperation Bases, 1 National TCM platform, 38 Provincial or Ministerial scientific research platforms, 2 Provincial Top Priority Disciplines, 4 Provincial Level-A Disciplines of Distinction, 6 Level-B Disciplines of Distinction, 10 Key Disciplines for Colleges and Universities in Zhejiang and 2 Provincial Priority Development Disciplines.
WMU takes to heart the needs of the people and society, and stays committed to the mission of educating healthcare professionals of excellence, those that operate with confidence and vision and strive to achieve and innovate. WMU offers 30 undergraduate programs, 2 undergraduate and master's programs with "5+3" education system and 1 Chinese-foreign education cooperation program in clinical medicine. At present, the total enrollment of WMU amounts to 16,040 (exclude Wenzhou Medical University Renji College), including 8,146 postgraduate students (550 doctorate students), 648 international students, covering a full range of programs that include bachelor’s and master’s degrees, doctoral and postdoctoral studies, from full-time education to continuing education programs, with students not only from mainland China but also overseas and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. As the quality of education improves steadily, WMU graduates from Clinical Medicine Program have consistently ranked within top 10% nationwide in terms of their passing rate of National qualification examination for medical practitioners. According to the latest data from Zhejiang Provincial Education Examination Institute, the comprehensive evaluation indicators for the career development and talent cultivation quality of 2021 graduates and the employment competitiveness of 2019 graduates three years after graduation are ranked first among ordinary undergraduate universities and colleges in Zhejiang Province, with 27 assessment indicators ranking 1st among ordinary undergraduate universities and colleges in Zhejiang Province.
WMU has more than 15,000 faculty and staff, including academic appointments of the affiliated hospitals, and over 1,800 of them hold senior professional titles. The main campus of the university has 1,820 full time teachers, of which 476 have senior professional and technical positions, 597 have associate senior professional and technical positions, and 1,475 have doctoral degrees. WMU has 1 academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 2 academician of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, 2 winners of the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars. Many excellent talents were selected in the National Ten Thousand Talents Plan, and as the Young and Middle-Aged Leading Talents in Science and Technology Innovation by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Provincial Super Experts; teachers won the National Scientific and Technological Progress Awards, Guanghua Engineering Science and Technology Prize, Science and Technology Prizes of the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation, and were honored as National Outstanding Teachers, National Moral Models, National March Eighth Red Flag Bearer, etc. WMU also has 1 Innovation Team of Ministry of Education, 2 National Higher Education Team of Huang Danian Style, 2 Innovation and Talents-Introduction Bases in Higher Education of the Ministry of Science and Technology (111 Base). WMU was also awarded as the Provincial Advanced Units for valuing talents.
WMU has 18 national first-class undergraduate major construction sites, 4 national featured major construction sites, 1 pilot project of national comprehensive reform on disciplines, 5 Pilot programs of Excellent Doctor Education and Training Plan of Ministry of Education, 1 national innovation experimental zone for talent training, 2 national experimental teaching demonstration centers, 1 national practice base, 1 National Clinical Teaching and Training Demonstration Center, 1 National Virtual Simulation Experimental Teaching Center; 13 national first-class courses, 5 national excellent resource-sharing courses, 1 national bilingual demonstration course, 2 national brand courses of English teaching for international students, 1 of the first demonstration courses of the Ministry of Education of ideological and political teaching, 1 textbook (editor-in-chief), which was rewarded with the second prize for the first National Excellent Textbooks, and 1 national advanced group for textbook construction; 2 of the first national virtual teaching and research laboratories, 2 national faculty teams, 3 national teaching masters, 1 teaching team of the Ministry of Education of ideological and political teaching, 1 teaching master of the Ministry of Education of ideological and political teaching, and 3 second prizes of national teaching awards.
In recent years, WMU has undertaken more than 1,600 scientific research projects of National level. More than 190 projects have won provincial, ministerial or national prizes, including 1 first prize of State Technological Invention Award, 5 second prizes of State Technological Invention Award, 2 second prizes of National Award for Technological Invention, 1 first prize and 3 second prizes of Technology Award of Ministry of Education, 5 first prizes of Chinese Medical Science and Technology Award, 1 first prize of Chinese Pharmaceutical Association Science and Technology Award, 1 major contribution award of Zhejiang Province Science and Technology Major Progress, 17 first prizes of Zhejiang Science and Technology Award, 1 first prize, 1 second prize and 1 third prize of Human and Social Science Award of Ministry of Education, 1 second prize for Outstanding Outcome Award in Education and Research and 19 first prizes of Zhejiang Philosophical and Social Science Award.
Wenzhou Medical University embraces internationalization in the course of its development. It has established partnerships with 32 countries (regions) of more than 170 education and research institutions, including more than 20 universities that rank top 100 worldwide, collaborating in the areas of overseas student exchange and joint education programs, faculty academic exchanges and research cooperation, Chinese-foreign Cooperation in Running Schools, international students education programs, etc. WMU has established four Chinese-foreign Cooperation in Running Schools, the Chinese and Foreign Doctor Degree Project in MS/OD in Optometry & Ophthalmology of China-USA Doctoral Education Program, Chinese and Foreign Bachelor Degrees in Clinical Medicine of China-Swiss Doctoral Education Program, and collaboration program in Master of Nursing Science Degree Between WMU and Burapha University, Thailand, Collaboration in Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Pharmacy Between WMU and Chonnam National University, Korea, among which two are listed as demonstration projects in Zhejiang Province. WMU and the University of Alberta, one of the top 100 universities in the world, co-established the Alberta Institute, Wenzhou Medical University, which is currently the highest level of Chinese-foreign cooperation in running medical schools in China. In cooperation with Medical University of Lublin, Poland, we established the Hua Tuo joint education program as the first joint education program in medical science between China and Poland, and it is also China's first overseas clinical medical education project. And WMU co-established Confucius Institutes with Burapha University in Thailand and State University of New York respectively. WMU was selected as the implementation institution of the “Program of Study Abroad for Young Scholar” sponsored by the China Scholarship Council, and the first batch of construction units of the “Internationalized Universities of Zhejiang Province”.
Composed of 3 campuses, WMU covers a total area of 1,436 mu. The university library has a collection of 2.08 million volumes paper books/documents and 0.99 million volumes electronic books/documents. WMU publishes 5 academic Journals and 1 academic newspaper, among which Eye and Vision is listed in SCIE academic journal and 3 journals are listed as China science and technology core journals. In addition, the Chinese Journal of Optometry & Ophthalmology and Visual Science, is listed as one of Chinese Medical Association Journals. WMU has 5 affiliated hospitals, among which four are ranked as Level A Tertiary. WMU also has 29 non-directly affiliated teaching hospitals across the province. The Eye Hospital, the First Affiliated Hospital and the Second Affiliated Hospital are among the top 100 hospitals selected by Chinese Academy of Medicine based on their technology impact. The Affiliated Eye Hospital ranked 1st for three consecutive years among eye hospitals nationwide, and its Ophthalmology ranked 2nd for three consecutive years nationwide.
Guided by the motto that stresses "Compassion, Reverence, Diligence, Modesty, Make Efforts and Seek Truth", WMU has been pursuing excellence through its unique strength and university culture, as well as the potential of its people. WMU is on a steady march towards comprehensive development that is propelled and guided by its programs of excellence. It seeks progress through internationalization, and strives to serve the regional social and economic development using its strength in healthcare service and capacity in bringing together the government, academy and business sectors. In 2023, WMU’s comprehensive strength is ranked 93 among Chinese universities in Wushulian Chinese University Rankings.
Wenzhou Medical University seeks to establish itself as a leading educational and research university deserving of international recognition and an institution emphasizing undergraduate medical education while vigorously developing graduate programs of the highest standard, maintaining medical disciplines as its core while promoting multi-disciplinary programs; and aspiring to serve the community and China as a whole with a global vision.
(Datas updated to Oct, 2023.)
