Chengdu University — guide for international students

Chengdu University (成都大学) was established in 1978 as one of the first full-time undergraduate institutions run by a city government after China’s reform and opening up. The university traces its lineage further back, to the public Sichuan Superior Normal School of 1906 and the public Sichuan Provincial Women’s Normal School of 1911. It taught at associate level from 1983, returned to bachelor’s-level status in 2003 as Chengdu College, and was approved by the Ministry of Education to take the name Chengdu University on 30 November 2018.

Since 2006 several Chengdu institutions have been merged into it, including Chengdu Education College, Chengdu Kindergarten Normal School and Chengdu Health School; the Sichuan Industrial Institute of Antibiotics, a national-level research platform, is also part of the university, and CDU has a century-old Grade-A tertiary affiliated general hospital.

The university’s own overview gives more than 27,600 full-time students (over 24,900 undergraduates and about 2,700 graduate students), more than 1,770 full-time teachers, 75 undergraduate majors in 11 disciplinary categories, 28 master’s degree points and 19 professional master’s categories. The main campus on Chengluo Avenue in Longquanyi District, in the east of Chengdu, covers 2,582 mu with 1.0151 million m² of buildings; the China-ASEAN Art College, which runs the art, music, dance and film programs, is in Shiling Town nearby.

CDU describes itself as aiming to be a first-class applied city university. It is not a Double First-Class or Project 211 university, so expect a regional, practice-oriented institution with modest fees rather than a national research flagship.

Chengdu University admits international students to four-year bachelor’s degrees, two- to three-year master’s degrees and non-degree Chinese language study. It does not offer doctoral study to international students; the university awards master’s degrees only. Applications go through two offices that share one online portal (https://admissions.cdu.edu.cn): the Office of International Cooperation and Exchange (OICE) handles non-art programs such as business, pharmacy, Chinese language and literature, tourism and civil engineering, while the International Division of the China-ASEAN Art College handles art, design, music, dance, animation and film programs. Almost everything is taught in Chinese, so HSK Level 4 is the normal requirement for degree study; the exceptions are the art-college master’s programs, which are taught in English with some bilingual courses and ask only for HSK Level 2 (180). For the 2026 intake the China-ASEAN Art College published a full 2026 degree guide (applications 30 December 2025 – 15 June 2026) and 2026 Chinese language guides. The OICE had not posted a separate 2026 guide for non-art programs on its site; the most recent full university guide is the 2025 edition, whose tuition and dorm rates match the OICE fee schedule and the 2026 art-college guide. The 2025 guide also closed non-art degree applications on 15 June. Before you apply to a non-art program, email the OICE to confirm this year’s dates and program list. Applicants must be at least 18 by 1 September 2026 (under-18s need a notarised guardianship document), and applications are reviewed within about 25 working days.

Degree programs

Select a degree level to see tuition, duration and entry requirements.

Non-degree programs

Documents to prepare

Application timeline

These are the dates Chengdu University published for the 2026 intake. That cycle has closed. Use them as a guide to when each step falls in the year, and check the official pages for the 2027 dates before you plan around them.

CDU’s scholarships are mostly partial awards funded by the university and the Chengdu municipal government, paid as a fixed amount per year rather than as a full waiver. You may hold only one scholarship at a time, and awards are reviewed every year on attendance, grades and conduct. The OICE notes that recipients first pay tuition, accommodation and insurance, and the award is then paid to them. The 2026 art-college guide says its scholarships are grants that do not cover the full tuition. CDU’s international pages do not list Chinese Government (CSC) or Sichuan provincial scholarship channels, so ask the OICE before planning around them. Apply for a scholarship at the same time as admission, using the university’s scholarship application form.

CDU’s research is applied and regional. The university reports 83 research platforms, including a national base for introducing overseas talent in low-carbon new materials, a Ministry of Science and Technology international cooperation base, a Ministry of Agriculture key laboratory and several Sichuan provincial key laboratories. It also counts research funding of more than RMB 250 million a year. The Sichuan Industrial Institute of Antibiotics, a national-level platform that became part of CDU in 2013, anchors its pharmacy and pharmacology strength. ESI lists CDU disciplines such as engineering, agricultural science, chemistry, materials science and clinical medicine in the global top 1%.

CDU has signed cooperation agreements with 186 universities and institutions in 41 countries and regions. It runs Stirling College, a Sino-British joint institute with the University of Stirling offering data science, new media and sport programs. It also has four Sino-foreign undergraduate and associate programs, more than 50 overseas joint-training programs from bachelor’s to doctoral level, and more than 50 exchange agreements. The university says it has enrolled more than 4,000 international students from 77 countries in total. The 2025 guide gave 4,600+ from 78 countries, and the English About page an older figure of 694 enrolled at one time, so ask the OICE for the current headcount. The China-ASEAN Art College focuses on Southeast Asia, for example through a Chinese culture program with Ubon Ratchathani Rajabhat University in Thailand.

CDU reports that over the past five years more than 95% of its graduates were placed in work or further study, and that 315 graduates went on to universities including Tsinghua, Peking, Zhejiang, Shanghai Jiao Tong, Edinburgh and Sydney. These figures cover all graduates, not international students specifically, and the university does not publish separate career outcomes for international students.

International students must live on campus in their first year. The international dorms have air conditioning, furniture, network ports and private bathrooms, and share kitchens, laundry rooms, refrigerators and study rooms. Hot water runs on a schedule and is charged separately. Dorm fees cover the winter and summer breaks. The admissions portal also handles dorm reservations and airport pick-up bookings.

Accommodation

Dining

The university does not publish canteen prices for international students on its international pages. The dorms have shared kitchens, so students can cook for themselves.

Facilities

Reach the Office of International Cooperation and Exchange (OICE), Chengdu University — non-art programs; International Division, China-ASEAN Art College — art, music, dance and film programs for questions about applications, documents, scholarships and arrival. Type university programs and offices are based on campus in Chengdu.