China Foreign Affairs University (CFAU)

The China Foreign Affairs University was founded in 1955 in Beijing. Although the University is often confused with Beijing’s University of International Relations, they are not the same University. China Foreign Affairs University has a unique history in teaching foreign affairs and diplomacy. The University was closed during the Cultural Revolution, which was shortly after the years that it was in its formative years. In 1980, Deng Xiaoping reopened the University in the movement to reopen many of China’s universities in the wake of the Cultural Revolution.

Notable Programs & Campuses Around China

China Foreign Affairs University is very specialized in its niche. The University caters to those that want to dedicate their coursework to International Relations and Foreign Diplomacy. The University does attract diplomats from governmental organizations around the world complete coursework along with Chinese citizens.

Currently, the University offers foreign languages to include: English, French, and Japanese. The foreign language program that China Foreign Affairs University offers is famous for training foreign diplomats and Chinese Civil Servants seeking to have rapid linguistic fluency. Additionally, in 2005, China Foreign Affairs University had courses for new diplomats for the new governments that were created in both Iraq and Afghanistan that lasted for one month in duration.

For students that are interested in studying at China Foreign Affairs University, there are majors particularly related to Foreign Policy, International Politics, International Relations, International Law, International Economics, and Foreign Diplomacy. Within these topic ranges, students can elect to study for their BA, MA, and PhD degree while studying at China Foreign Affairs University.

China Foreign Affairs University has two campuses. The Old Campus is called the Zhanlan Road Campus and is located in downtown Beijing between the 2nd and 3rd ring road. Since 2012, China Foreign Affairs University has begun to transfer students to their new state of the art campus in Shahe that has more capacity for its growing student population. The new Shahe campus is excellent for hosting impressive guest speakers, foreign language courses, and diverse student clubs.

Final Remarks

In the coming years, China Foreign Affairs University will be one to watch. Even though its closure inhibited its growth, it is absolutely making up for lost time. The University’s approach by including foreign diplomats on their campus is brilliant because it is already exposing their Foreign Affairs students to global citizens. There have been already many notable and successful alumni that have graduated from China Foreign Affairs University such as: Wang Yi, Jiang Yu, Rui Chenggang, and Dai Bingguo. For international students and Chinese students that are certain they want to go the Foreign Affairs path, China Foreign Affairs University is an excellent place to study. Be sure to consider this University if you want to study Foreign Affairs in an economy that will be one of the most important in both Business and International Relations in the coming years. You will not only have incredible networking opportunities, but you will also have the potential to take courses from distinguished professors in China’s foreign policy community.