Our School
About the College
Peking University has a long-standing history in agricultural research and education. The Agricultural Division of Imperial University of Peking was founded in 1905. From 1910 to 1945, it underwent three historical periods: the late Qing Dynasty, the Beiyang Government, and the Nationalist Government, during which its name, organizational structure, and administrative setup evolved alongside political changes.
In October 1946, Peking University resumed its operation in Beiping and re?established the College of Agriculture at the former site of the Agricultural College of Beiping University, appointing Professor Yu Dafu as its dean. The college gathered a large number of distinguished scholars and established a relatively complete academic system. By then, the College of Agriculture of Peking University had become the largest agricultural college in China with the most comprehensive majors and the strongest faculty, ranking first among agricultural institutions nationwide.
Within just a few years, the college recruited renowned agricultural scientists including Xiong Dashi, Li Xianwen, Li Jingjun, Chen Huakui, Li Lianjie, Cai Xu, and Wu Zhongxian. It consisted of 10 departments: Agronomy, Horticulture, Forestry, Animal Science, Veterinary Medicine, Agricultural Economics, Entomology, Plant Pathology, Agricultural Chemistry, and Soil and Fertilizer Science. The college employed more than 120 faculty members and enrolled over 300 students.
In 1949, the Agricultural Colleges of Peking University, Tsinghua University, and North China University merged to form Beijing Agricultural University. Nevertheless, agricultural research at Peking University continued uninterrupted. Extensive research was conducted in agricultural core disciplines and interdisciplinary fields, including applied chemistry, biotechnology, applied microbiology, toxicology, medicinal chemistry, educational science, and geriatrics.
With the further social and economic development of China, the importance of modern agricultural science has become increasingly prominent. Accelerating the development of modern agriculture is not only essential for transforming the economic development pattern and building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, but also an inevitable requirement for improving comprehensive agricultural production capacity, increasing farmers’ income, and building a new socialist countryside.
The report to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China put forward the concept of “simultaneous development of the four modernizations,” clearly stating that China should adhere to the path of new industrialization, informatization, urbanization, and agricultural modernization with Chinese characteristics; promote the deep integration of informatization and industrialization, the sound interaction between industrialization and urbanization, and the mutual coordination of urbanization and agricultural modernization; and advance the synchronized development of industrialization, informatization, urbanization, and agricultural modernization.
Against this background, to meet China’s needs for developing modern agriculture, integrate national strategic demands with Peking University’s disciplinary strengths, and conduct high?level, high?standard, world?class cutting?edge agricultural research and talent training, Peking University decided in October 2014 to establish the School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences (Preparatory Office). On December 13, 2017, the school was officially founded.
The School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences (SAAS) is an independent and comprehensive research institute of Peking University. It integrates national strategic needs with Peking University’s multidisciplinary strengths to conduct high?starting?point, high?standard, world?class cutting?edge agricultural science research and talent cultivation.
The school focuses on the development of agricultural biotechnology, agricultural and development economics, food security and health, and smart agriculture, emphasizing interdisciplinary research and education. It strives to address major scientific and bottleneck challenges in modern agricultural development, and aims to build a high?end talent training base integrating basic theory, industrial application, and strategic policy. SAAS provides theoretical support, core technologies, backbone talents, and policy advice for the development of China’s new countryside.
