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About YRCTU

Yellow River Conservancy Technical University (YRCTU) is a public vocational undergraduate institution located in Kaifeng, a renowned historical and cultural city as well as an outstanding tourism destination in China. Its predecessor, Yellow River Conservancy Technical Institute (YRCTI), was among first batch of National Demonstrative Higher Vocational Institutions, a National High-Quality Higher Vocational College, and a Class A (top ten nationwide) construction unit for High-Level Vocational Schools with Chinese Characteristics. YRCTU traces its origins back to 1929, having undergone several historical transitions, including periods as National Yellow River Basin Water Conservancy College, Yellow River Water Conservancy Technical College, Yellow River Water Conservancy College, and Yellow River Water Conservancy School. In March 1998, it was restructured and renamed Yellow River Conservancy Technical Institute (YRCTI) with the approval of the State Education Commission. In March 2000, the institution was transferred from the Ministry of Water Resources to Henan Province, adopting a co-construction model between the province and the ministry. In February 2025, it was upgraded to its current status as Yellow River Conservancy Technical University (YRCTU).


With a profound educational heritage and widespread social acclaim, YRCTU has nurtured talent for over 90 years, shaping its educational philosophy as the Cradle of Technical Talent and Base for Innovation and Service. Its disciplinary positioning emphasizes “engineering as the foundation, water conservancy as the distinctive focus, a unified framework with dual supporting pillars, and distinctive development”, while its talent development mission focuses on “cultivating high-quality technical and skilled talents with all-round development of morality, intelligence, physical fitness, aesthetics, and labor, in response to the needs of frontline production, construction, management, and service”. Nearly 200,000 graduates have gone on to make significant contributions across the nation, earning YRCTU the reputation as the Huangpu Military Academy of the Yellow River Basin. Yang Zhenhuai, former Minister of Water Resources, praised YRCTU as the Cradle of Technical Cadres for the Yellow River. During his inspection, Zhang Dejiang, former Member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, spoke highly of YRCTUs educational conditions and distinctive characteristics. Guo Gengmao, former Secretary of the CPC Henan Provincial Committee, expressed during his research on vocational education, We hope you will continue to set an example, create valuable experience, and accelerate the development of vocational education at all levels in Henan Province. Li Guoying, Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and Minister of Water Resources, remarked during his visit: Without YRCTU, there would not have been over 50 years of peace and stability along the Yellow River. Through the persistent efforts of its entire faculty and students, YRCTU has long stood as a nationally advanced higher vocational institution, known for its strong teaching faculty, distinctive specialties, high education quality, robust technical service capabilities, and continuous innovation in international exchanges and cooperation.


YRCTU boasts excellent educational conditions and a strong teaching faculty. It covers an area of 1,780.70 mu (about 293.3 acres) with a building area of 522,100 square meters. The total value of its teaching and research instruments and equipment stands at 793 million yuan, and its total assets amount to 2.338 billion yuan (with fixed assets totaling 1.844 billion yuan). Its library houses over 1.38 million physical books and more than 900,000 e-books. It has built 193 on-campus integrated theory-practice training sites and 533 off-campus internship bases. YRCTU has a team of “dual-qualified” teachers characterized by “noble professional ethics, rational structure, excellent quality, and integration of full-time and part-time roles”. There are 851 full-time teachers, among whom 41.01% hold the titles of professor or associate professor, and 88.48% have a doctoral or master’s degree. There are 569 provincial-level “dual-qualified” teachers, accounting for 78.92% of professional course teachers. YRCTU is home to 2 national-level teaching teams, 2 national-level innovative teaching teams, 2 national Huang Danian-style teacher teams, and 2 national curriculum ideology and politics teaching teams. It also has 1 leading talent of the National “Ten Thousand Talents Program”, 1 national teaching master of higher education, and 5 recipients of the Special Government Allowances of the State Council. Additionally, over 80 experts honored at the provincial level, such as Henan High-Level Talents, Leading Talents of the “Central China Talents Program” in Henan Province, Henan Teaching Masters, Models of Teaching and Educating in Henan Province, Henan Model Teachers, Recipients of Special Government Allowances of Henan Province, Vocational Education Teaching Experts in Henan Province, Academic and Technical Leaders in Henan Province, Excellent Educational and Teaching Management Talents in Henan Province, and National Famous Teachers in Water Conservancy Vocational Education. The full-time student enrollment currently stands at 14,929.


It boasts an advanced educational philosophy and has achieved remarkable results in talent cultivation. With the goal of cultivating high-quality technical and skilled talents, YRCTU adheres to the school-running policy of “addressing societal needs, embracing future development, and delivering higher vocational education that satisfies the people” and upholds the educational philosophy centered on “employment orientation, talent cultivation as the core, and specialty development as the priority, integrating teaching, management, service, and production into the holistic development of students”. It actively explores new models of talent cultivation and strives to achieve the coordinated development of students’ knowledge, abilities, qualities, and personalities. YRCTU comprises 16 teaching units, including the Hydraulic Engineering School, Civil and Transportation Engineering School, Surveying and Mapping Engineering School, Mechanical Engineering School, International Education School (Foreign Language Teaching Department), Electrical Engineering School, Finance and Accounting School, Business and Management School, Environmental Engineering School, Information Engineering School, Tourism School, Art and Design School (Art Education Center), School of Marxism, Continuing Education School, Basic Courses Department, and Physical Education Department. It offers 64 higher vocational college programs such as Smart Water Conservancy Technology, Surveying and Mapping Geographic Information Technology, Intelligent Manufacturing Equipment Technology, and Application of Artificial Intelligence Technology, as well as 6 higher vocational undergraduate programs including Water Conservancy and Hydropower Engineering, Surveying and Mapping Engineering Technology, Mechanical Design, Manufacturing and Automation, Agricultural Water Conservancy Engineering, Ecological Environmental Engineering Technology, and Automation Technology and Application. It has 1 national-level top-quality specialty, 2 national-level pilot specialties for teaching reform, 5 national-level pilot specialties for modern apprenticeship, 10 specialties included in the national key specialty group construction under the “Double High-Level Plan (the High-Level Vocational Schools and Professional Development Plan with Chinese Characteristics)”, 5 key specialties under the “National Demonstrative Higher Vocational College Construction Plan”, and 7 national key specialties under the “Action Plan for the Innovative Development of Higher Vocational Education”. Additionally, it has 3 national-level professional teaching resource databases and 33 national-level courses in various categories, ranking first among vocational colleges in China. It has won 10 national teaching achievement awards and 1 first prize and 1 second prize respectively in the first National Textbook Development Awards.


Over the past three years, students have won 1,328 awards at or above the provincial and ministerial levels in various vocational skills competitions. Among these, there are 4 world-class awards, 553 national-level awards, and 771 provincial and ministerial-level awards. YRCTU has won the first prize in the “Engineering Surveying” Category of the Vocational Skills Competition of the People’s Republic of China for 7 consecutive years, and has claimed the group first prize 15 times in the Water Conservancy Category of the “Higher Education Cup” National Advanced Mapping Technology and Product Information Modeling Innovation Competition for College Students. The annual average employment rate of graduates exceeds 98%, and the employment competitiveness of graduates ranks first among higher vocational colleges in Henan Province.


YRCTU has deepened the integration of industry and education and achieved fruitful results in scientific and technological services. Focusing on applied research and technical services, YRCTU has continuously deepened the integration of industry and education and enhanced its ability to serve society. It has carried out a series of scientific research and technical services around serving the national strategy of “Ecological Protection and High-Quality Development of the Yellow River Basin”. It has successively signed strategic cooperation agreements with institutions, governments, industries, and enterprises such as the Vocational Skills Appraisal and Guidance Center of the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Yellow River Conservancy Commission, the People’s Government of Kaifeng City, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Yellow River Co., Ltd., STECOL CORPORATION under Power Construction Corporation of China, and HIT Robot Group Co., Ltd. It has taken the lead in establishing the Yellow River Basin Vocational Education Alliance and the China Surveying, Mapping and Geographic Information Vocational Education Group, and has jointly built 14 talent cultivation platforms with enterprises, including the Yellow River Pearl Industry College, Kunpeng Industry College, and BYD Field Engineer College, realizing complementary advantages, win-win cooperation, and common development. It has 8 scientific and technological innovation platforms at or above the provincial and ministerial levels, including 1 national-level makerspace, 6 provincial engineering (technology) research centers, and 1 provincial postdoctoral innovation practice base. It also has 1 municipal-level business incubator, 1 technology transfer demonstration base, 6 key laboratories, and 28 municipal and departmental-level engineering technology research centers, making it the vocational college with the largest number of scientific and technological innovation platforms approved by the Henan Provincial Government.


International exchanges and cooperation have been steadily deepened, and the level of internationalized school running has been gradually elevated. YRCTU actively responds to the national “Belt and Road” Initiative and supports enterprises’ “Going Global” strategy. It has jointly established 4 overseas Dayu Schools with enterprises, developed the “one core, multiple hubs, and four integrations” international talent cultivation model for water conservancy, and seen 18 of its developed international teaching standards officially recognized by countries such as Zambia, South Africa, Ethiopia, and Tanzania, thus exporting the brand of China’s water conservancy vocational education. YRCTU has established friendly cooperative relations with 58 universities and educational institutions in 28 countries and regions. It boasts 1 Sino-foreign cooperative education institution and 7 such programs, having cumulatively cultivated over 800 international students from 58 countries studying in China. It has completed more than 20 technical service projects in 7 countries including Equatorial Guinea and Bangladesh, and promoted the overseas version of the modern apprenticeship system characterized by “taking engineering projects as training sites and water conservancy dams as teaching venues”. By doing so, it has trained a large number of local technical and skilled talents for countries involved in the “Belt and Road” Initiative, pioneered overseas school running among both national water conservancy vocational colleges and Henan’s vocational colleges, and built an international brand for Henan’s vocational education. YRCTU is a founding member of the World Technical and Vocational Education and Training League, a construction unit of internationalized characteristic universities in Henan Province, and one of the first approved construction units for the initiative of “Dahe Workshop” vocational education going global in Henan Province. It has also been honored as one of the “Top 50 Vocational Colleges with International Influence” in China for two consecutive years.


By steadily advancing innovation and entrepreneurship education to serve the high-quality development of the regional economy, YRCTU has taken deepening the reform of innovation and entrepreneurship education as a key measure to improve the quality of cultivating innovative technical and skilled talents, forming the concept of innovation and entrepreneurship education characterized by value guidance, integration of specialty and innovation, and talent cultivation through practice. YRCTU has successively won honors such as National Model University for Deepening the Reform of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Education, National Innovation and Entrepreneurship College, National Makerspace, National Model Vocational College for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and Top 100 National Vocational Colleges for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. The directly affiliated Party branch of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship College was selected as a Model Party Branch for Party Building Work in Henan Province. YRCTU has achieved fruitful results in innovation and entrepreneurship, winning 1 second prize of National Teaching Achievement Award, 1 special prize and 2 first prizes of Henan Provincial Teaching Achievement Award. In the China International College Students Innovation Competition, it has achieved excellent results with 1 gold, 7 silver and 11 bronze medals at the national level, and 70 gold, 82 silver and 83 bronze medals at the provincial level. With the overall goal of cultivating high-quality innovative and entrepreneurial talents with a sense of social responsibility, innovative spirit, entrepreneurial awareness and creative ability, YRCTU will coordinate internal and external resources for innovation and entrepreneurship education, optimize the talent collaborative cultivation system centered on the dual-platform, triple-ecosystem framework, and build a regional innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem to serve the innovative and high-quality development of the regional economy and society.

YRCTU has achieved remarkable school-running results and enjoys high social recognition. Relying on water conservancy, serving Henan, taking root in Central China and going global, YRCTU adheres to the employment-oriented approach, unswervingly follows the path of vocational education development, deepens reforms, strengthens connotative development, and has made leapfrog progress in various undertakings. YRCTU has been awarded numerous titles, including National Civilized Unit, National Advanced Unit in Vocational Education, Pilot University for the Construction of the “One-Stop” Student Community Comprehensive Management Model by the Ministry of Education, National Characteristic Pilot Base for Intelligent Social Governance, National Advanced Collective in the Education System, National Model University with Typical Experience in Graduate Employment, National Model University for Deepening the Reform of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Education, National Outstanding Contribution Unit for Cultivating Skilled Talents, National May Fourth Red Flag Communist Youth League Committee, “Excellent Unit Case Model” in National Student Financial Aid Work, Cultivation Unit of National Demonstrative Vocational Education Group (Alliance), Advanced Unit in Henan Provincial Vocational Education Initiative, Advanced Collective in Employment Work of Henan Provincial Colleges and Secondary Schools, Advanced Unit in Party Building Work of Henan Provincial Colleges and Universities, Advanced Unit in School Ethics Construction of Henan Province, and Excellent Unit in the Evaluation of Moral Education Work of Henan Provincial Colleges and Universities.


With renewed vigor, we set forth once more, raising our sails to embark on a new journey. Guided by the university motto of “Upholding Integrity, Pursuing Innovation, Striving for Entrepreneurship, and Cultivating Competence”, YRCTU community is advancing with confidence and high spirits toward the vision of building a “distinctive, nationally first-class, and world-renowned” vocational and technical university.

(Data as of March 2025)