Shanxi Medical University traces its roots back to Shanxi Medical Training Institute, which was founded in 1919 in the ancient city of Bingzhou (the historical name of Taiyuan).In 1932, it was restructured and renamed Private Shanxi Chuanzhi Medical Junior College. In 1940, it became the Medical Training Department of Shanxi University. In 1946, the department was upgraded to the National School of Medicine, Shanxi University. When the Bethune International Peace Medical Junior College, established by the Communist Party of China in the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan border region, merged into the school in 1949, its red heritage was further enriched. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the institution entered a brand-new era of development. It became an independent university in 1953 and was renamed Shanxi Medical College. Finally, in 1996, it adopted its current name: Shanxi Medical University.
The university holds the distinction of being one of the third batch of doctoral degree-granting units nationwide, as well as the first batch of master's and bachelor's degree-granting units in Shanxi Province. It is also recognized as an early pilot unit for the Ministry of Education's "Excellent Doctor Education and Training Program," a supported institution under the National Central and Western Universities Basic Capacity Building Project, one of the "Old Six" medical institutions in the national healthsystem, one of the 18 high-level public health colleges nationwide, and among the first universities approved by the Ministry of Education to establish a forensic medicine program and resume the undergraduate program in pediatrics.The university was honored with the national flag raised on September 6, 2019 at Tiananmen Square. Its "Red Pomegranate" Studio was bestowed with the title of "National Model Collective for Ethnic Unity and Progress" by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council.
After 107 years of construction and development, the university has evolved into a medical-focused institution with integrated development across medicine, engineering, science, humanities, and management. It boasts a comprehensive talent cultivation system spanning undergraduate, master's, and doctoral education, embodying the motto School Motto of "医理博精 德能高邃" —Broad and Profound in Medicine, High and Sound in Virtue; the School Ethos of "献身、务实、团结、进取"—Dedication, Pragmatism, Solidarity and Enterprisingness; and the School Spirit of "求实精进 坚韧弘毅"—Practicality and Diligence, Persistence and Tenacity.
The university operates three campuses—Chuanzhi, Yingze, and Zhongdu—encompassing a total area of 1,422 acres and a building area of 710,000 square meters. It comprises 40 teaching institutions, including the First to Fifth Clinical Medical Colleges, Basic Medical College, School of Public Health, School of Pharmacy, School of Forensic Medicine, and School of Nursing. Additionally, it has 60 affiliated and teaching hospitals, 103 teaching bases, and 5 industry-education integration graduate joint training bases within Shanxi Province.
With a faculty and medical staff exceeding 7,000, the university includes over 2,300 graduate supervisors and over 2,200 clinical teachers. It is home to national and provincial-level experts and high-level talents, such as recipients of the National Outstanding Youth Science Fund, National Excellent Youth Science Fund, National Outstanding Contributors Award, chief scientists of the National Key R&D Program, "New Century Hundred, Thousand, and Ten Thousand Talents Project" national candidates, and Ministry of Education "New Century Excellent Talents." Furthermore, it houses 24 national and provincial-level teaching teams, including National Excellent Teaching Teams.
The university possesses one national key discipline—Physiology, and Two Academician Workstations— the Reverse Pathogenicology Research Center Academician Workstation and the Nuclear Medicine Innovation Academician Workstation. It also hosts two key laboratories of the Ministry of Education—the Cell Physiology Key Laboratory and the Coal Environment Pathogenesis and Prevention Key Laboratory—along with a provincial-ministerial collaborative innovation center, the Molecular Imaging Precision Diagnosis and Treatment Provincial-Ministerial Collaborative Innovation Center. Additional assets include a National Health Commission key laboratory, the Pneumoconiosis Key Laboratory; a Ministry of Education pharmaceutical basic research innovation center, the Chronic Kidney Disease Pharmaceutical Basic Research Innovation Center; a China Atomic Energy Authority nuclear technology research and development center, the Nuclear Medicine Diagnosis, Treatment, and Transformation Research and Development Center; and a Ministry of Public Security forensic toxicology analysis key laboratory. National demonstration centers encompass the Clinical Skills Training Center, Basic Medical Experimental Teaching Center, and Clinical Teaching Training Demonstration Center, alongside a national innovation and entrepreneurship college.
Currently, the university has 10 academic disciplines ranked among the top 1% globally in ESI— Clinical Medicine, Pharmacology & Toxicology, Neuroscience & Behavior, Biology & Biochemistry, Social Sciences, General, Chemistry, Materials Science, Molecular Biology & Genetics, Immunology, and Psychiatry & Psychology. Special Medicine has secured the top position nationwide in the Soft Science China's Best Discipline Ranking for 4 consecutive years and has been designated a top discipline in China. It has also ranked first nationwide in the Alumni Association China's First-Class Discipline Ranking for two consecutive years, earning selection as a world-class and top discipline in China by the Alumni Association. The university boasts 12 national key clinical specialties, 34 national key clinical specialty construction projects, and 6 national-supported key clinical specialties in Shanxi Province. It boasts 97 provincial-level scientific research platforms of various types.
The university offers five first-level disciplines with postdoctoral research stations: Clinical Medicine, Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Specialty Medicine, Basic Medical Sciences, and Nursing. It provides six first-level doctoral degree authorization points, two doctoral professional degree authorization points, 11 first-level master's degree authorization points, and 10 master's professional degree authorization points. Notable undergraduate programs include 12 national first-class undergraduate professional construction sites and five national characteristic specialty construction sites. Clinical Medicine (five-year program), Clinical Medicine (Rural-oriented Free Students), and Nursing are designated as pilot programs under the Ministry of Education's "Undergraduate Teaching Engineering" for local university undergraduate professional comprehensive reform. The university offers 30 undergraduate programs, encompassing Clinical Medicine (five-year program, "5+3" integrated program), Preventive Medicine, Forensic Medicine, Stomatology, Pediatrics, Medical Imaging, Anesthesiology, Nursing, Psychiatry, Ophthalmology and Optometry, Pharmacy, and more.
Currently, the university accommodates 22,303 full-time students, including 14,311 undergraduates, 6,698 master's students, 1,028 doctoral students, and 266 international students. Since its inception, the university has nurtured over 150,000 medical and health professionals, including renowned figures such as Xu Fujing, Shi Shuhan, Wang Minting, Liu Qian (former directors of the Central Health Care Bureau), Zhao Xuefang (the inaugural recipient of the "Bethune Medal" and acclaimed as "the People's Good Doctor"), academicians Xu Jianguo and Tian Zhigang of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and Nursing Award recipients Yang Hui and Zhang Yinghui.
The university maintains a robust momentum in scientific research. In 2025, it secured 71 national-level projects, including 1 National Science and Technology Major Project, 56 National Natural Science Foundation projects, and 3 National Social Science Foundation projects. It also obtained 216 provincial and ministerial-level projects of various types and conducted 86 horizontal cooperative research projects. A total of 6,126 papers were published, among which 3,682 were indexed in SCI. Collaborative efforts with institutions such as the School of Medicine, Tsinghua University and the BGI Research have been further deepened, resulting in the publication of 8 papers in Cell, Nature and Science (CNS). The university has won 25 Shanxi Provincial Science and Technology Awards, obtained 401 authorized patents and secured 541 software copyright registrations.
The university actively pursues international exchanges and cooperation as well as international student education. It has established cooperative ties with 49 universities and colleges and relevant educational and research institutions across 17 countries, and joined 6 highly influential educational alliances including the China-Russia Medical University Alliance. For three consecutive years, it has hosted the International Industry-University-Research-Application Cooperation Conference under the auspices of the Ministry of Education. In collaboration with the University of Wolverhampton, UK, the university jointly founded the Shanxi Medical University-Wolverhampton International Health Institute—the first Sino-foreign cooperative medical education institution in Shanxi Province. It also vigorously implements the Overseas Training Program for Young Backbone Teachers and the Overseas Training Program for Doctoral Students, thereby continuously enhancing the international competence of its faculty, students, medical staff and healthcare workers.
Standing at a new historical juncture, the university remains steadfast in adhering to the guidance of President Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. It is committed to implementing the visions of the National Education Conference and the Provincial Education Conference, upholding and strengthening the Party's comprehensive leadership over the university, and firmly implementing the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education. With its sights set on the strategic goal of becoming a nationally first-class research-applied medical university, the university is poised to make new and significant contributions to the development of an education powerhouse and a strong education province, as well as to the realization of a Healthy China and a Healthy Shanxi.
(Updated on January 14, 2026)
