Southeast University — guide for international students

Southeast University (东南大学) traces its origins to Sanjiang Normal College, founded in 1902 on the site of the Ming Dynasty’s Imperial College in Nanjing. The school became Liangjiang Normal College in 1905 and Nanjing Higher Normal School in 1915, and was rebuilt as National Southeast University in 1921. In 1928 it was reorganised as National Central University. In the 1952 national restructuring, Nanjing Institute of Technology was established on the Sipailou campus, and in May 1988 it took back the name Southeast University. In 2000 SEU merged with Nanjing Railway Medical College and Nanjing Transportation College, and Nanjing Geological School was incorporated.

SEU’s main campuses are Sipailou, Jiulonghu and Dingjiaqiao, covering 5,888 mu in total; Jiulonghu, in Jiangning District, accounts for 3,752.35 mu. SEU also has campuses in Wuxi, Suzhou and Nantong. Two campuses matter most for international students. Jiulonghu has the College of International Students (Lanyuan Building 3) and the Lanyuan dormitory. Dingjiaqiao, the medical campus, has the second international dormitory.

SEU is a national key university directly under the Ministry of Education and co-built with Jiangsu Province. It was part of Project 985 and Project 211, and in 2017 it was placed on the Class A list of universities to be built into world-class institutions. Twelve of its disciplines are on the second-round Double First-Class list. The university introduction (updated 26 March 2026) counts 39 schools and departments, 85 undergraduate majors and 43,651 full-time students: 17,277 undergraduates and 26,256 graduate students. It also counts 2,381 international students, 1,688 of them degree students, along with 3,070 full-time teachers and 19 academicians. Other official pages give different international-student counts: 2,165 on the English General Information page (March 2025) and 2,005 on the English homepage. This guide uses 2,381, which is also the College of International Students’ own count as of 31 December 2025.

All international applications go through the College of International Students (海外教育学院) at fs.seu.edu.cn. You may choose only one program, and repeat applications are disqualified. Once your file passes the initial review, the system asks for the application fee, which is non-refundable “whether you are admitted or not”. Final results appear on the College website around July. On 25 November 2025 the College published separate 2026 undergraduate and postgraduate guides, alongside program guides for the English-taught Clinical Medicine program (MBBS), E-commerce, Tourism Management, the School of Architecture and three YES-CHINA master’s programs. All of them are embedded documents whose full text this guide could not read. The figures below therefore come from four other sources: the College’s standing fee pages, its 2026 scholarship pages (which give the 2026 application window and document list), the Medical School and School of Architecture admission pages, and the 2025 undergraduate guide where stated. No 2027 guide had been published by mid-September 2026. The pages consulted give no upper age limit for any level. The School of Architecture requires a China Scholastic Competency Assessment (CSCA) mathematics transcript for its English-taught Bachelor of Architecture; whether other undergraduate majors need the CSCA could not be confirmed.

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 Southeast 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.

The College’s scholarship table lists six schemes. The Chinese Government Scholarship (CSC), the Jiangsu Provincial Government/Jasmine Scholarship and the Nanjing Municipal Government Scholarship are open to postgraduates, undergraduates and non-degree students. CSC’s postgraduate track is for postgraduates only, the SEU President Scholarship is for degree students only, and the International Chinese Language Teachers Scholarship is for language students only. The College says awards range “from the full scholarship covering all tuition fees and RMB3500/USD556 monthly allowance to the partial scholarship with the waiver of some tuition fees”. Applicants who pass all reviews are considered for CSC and President awards on an overall assessment, and CSC awards also need an application in the CSC online system. Anyone who wins an award and then gives up the admission cannot apply for it again, and SEU Scholarship holders face an annual review (the 2025/2026 review notice was issued on 21 April 2026).

SEU’s research strengths match its Double First-Class list: architecture and landscape; civil and transportation engineering; electronics, communications, control and computing; materials and mechanical engineering; and biomedical engineering. The university introduction (March 2026) says SEU leads 3 national key laboratories and co-builds 5 more, leads 1 national technology innovation centre and co-builds 2, and leads 1 national engineering research centre and 2 national engineering technology research centres. The English General Information page (March 2025) gives an older reading: 8 national key laboratories and 3 national technology innovation centres, whose totals match the led and co-built facilities combined.

SEU’s International Cooperation Office counts more than 160 partner universities and research institutions in over 45 countries and regions. By region: Europe 83, Asia 42, the Americas 28, Oceania 11 and Africa 3. The Chinese university introduction uses a narrower measure: close partnerships with more than 60 institutions in 20 countries or regions. For international students, the most visible partnership is the SEU–Monash Joint Graduate School in Suzhou.

SEU does not publish employment or salary outcomes for its international graduates. The College of International Students’ Student Employment page (学生就业) posts recruitment notices aimed at international students; at the time of checking it listed 28, including 2026 postings from engineering firms such as PowerChina Municipal Construction Group. Before you take any job, note the College’s rule: without permission from the International Student Center and the exit-entry authorities, international students may not work or intern in China in any form.

International students live in double rooms. Each has its own bathroom, a water heater and shower, air-conditioning, single beds, desks, chairs and wardrobes. The College’s dormitory page says rooms are scarce and allocated first come, first served, with no advance booking. For 2026–27, however, the College issued a room reservation and fee-payment notice on 26 June 2026, so follow the instructions sent after admission. Accommodation costs RMB 9,000 per academic year. Students staying a year or longer pay the full year up front, and utilities are paid separately. If you live off campus, you must register with the police within 24 hours of moving in, with your landlord’s help, and file a form with the International Student Center.

Accommodation

Dining

The College does not publish canteen locations or meal prices for international students, so budget for food separately.

Facilities

Reach the College of International Students (海外教育学院), Southeast University for questions about applications, documents, scholarships and arrival. Type university programs and offices are based on campus in Nanjing.