The Silkworm Academy, predecessor of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, was established by Hangzhou magistrate Lin Qi to realize his vision to save the nation with industry and education in the year of 1897, and one of the earliest ever new educational institutions in China. In the year of 1908, owing to its outstanding schooling performance, it was upgraded as “Higher Sericulture School” by Qing Government with imperial assent. During the period from Xinhai Revolution to the eve of liberation, because of the unrest domestic situation, the school was repeatedly renamed, transferred here and there, underwent vicissitudes and hardships, but had all along been sticking to its schooling. After the foundation of PRC, the school has been forging ahead, and made its new historic chapter. The school began to enroll undergraduate students in 1959, was renamed as Zhejiang Institute of Silk Textiles by the State Council in 1964, began to enroll master student in 1979, and began to have the right to confer master degree in1983. In the year of 1999, approved by the Ministry of Education, the school was renamed as Zhejiang Institute of Science and Technology. In the year of 2004, approved by the Ministry of Education, the school was renamed as Zhejiang Sci-Tech university (herefrom as ZSTU). In the year of 2006, it began to have the right to confer doctorate degree. In the year of 2010, approved by the Ministry of Education, it began to be qualified to recommend excellent graduates to be candidates of master degree.

27,000 all-time students, among whom there are over 3100 graduate students. The university boasts 60 undergraduate programs, among which there are 8 national (MOE) feature specialties, 1 MOE comprehensive reform pilot specialty, 6 MOE PETOE pilot specialties, 3 MOE-Autodesk Company specialty comprehensive reform programs, 12 “Twelfth Five-year” provincial advantageous specialties, 8 provincial emerging specialties and 1 provincial internationalization specialty. ZSTU boasts 2 first-level disciplines to confer doctor’s degree (including 12 second-level disciplines to confer doctor’s degree), 17 first-level disciplines to confer master’s degree and 6 independently-designated second-level disciplines to confer master’s degree (including 65 second-level disciplines to confer master’s degree), and is entitled to confer such professional degrees as master of engineering (including 13 categories of master of engineering), master of fine arts, master of business administration, master of applied psychology, master of translation and interpretation, and confer master’s degree to those candidates with same educational level. ZSTU boasts 1 provincial higher education top priority first-level discipline, 3 provincial higher education top priority (first-level) disciplines, 1 provincial higher education humanities and social science key research base, 11 provincial higher education key disciplines; ZSTU boasts 1 state-local jointly operated engineering laboratory, 1 state-international jointly operated technological cooperation base, 1 MOE key laboratory, 2 MOE engineering research centers, 1 provincial 2011 coordinated innovation center, 8 provincial key laboratories/engineering technology research centers, 1 provincial philosophy and social science key research base, 1 provincial engineering laboratory, 2 provincial (technology) research centers, 1 Zhejiang Provincial Department of Culture key research center; ZSTU boasts 2 national experimental teaching demonstrating centers, 1 national virtual simulation experimental teaching demonstrating center, and is listed as a national university student innovation and entrepreneurship training scheme implementation university. ZSTU boasts 2 national engineering practical education centers, 1 national university students’ off-campus practical education base. ZSTU boasts 4 national quality video open courses, 5 national quality resource sharing courses, 2 national bilingual teaching demonstrating courses, 1 MOE foreign student in-English brand course, and 7 “Twelfth Five-year” nationally-planned textbooks.