Sun Yat-sen University
Guangzhou · Comprehensive
Top tier — Priority coverage — programs, tuition and English-taught options actively maintained; a full international admission profile is shown where available.
Guangzhou
Major city Metro Est. budget CNY 3,000–5,500 (USD 420–760) / month incl. dorm or shared flatThe historical gateway of China–Africa and China–Southeast Asia trade, Guangzhou mixes two thousand years of Cantonese merchant culture with a modern megacity of trade fairs and factories. Sun Yat-sen University, South China University of Technology and Jinan University — the university built for overseas students — anchor a huge international student body. The Xiaobei district's African, Arab and South Asian trading community makes it, for many students from those regions, the most familiar city in China.
City guide: climate, halal food, healthcare & rent →
International admission
Bachelor: High school certificate; HSK 4–5 (Chinese-taught) or IELTS 6.0 / TOEFL 80 (English-taught)
Master’s: Bachelor degree + HSK 5 (Chinese-taught) or IELTS 6.0–6.5 / TOEFL 80–90 (English-taught)
PhD: Master degree + research proposal and supervisor acceptance; HSK or English proof depending on program language
English-taught: IELTS 6.0–6.5 / TOEFL 80–90 typical
Chinese-taught: HSK 4–5 for bachelor, HSK 5 for postgrad
Tuition (typical range — pending verification): Bachelor ¥ 24,000–34,000 / Master ¥ 25,000–40,000 / PhD ¥ 25,000–35,000 per year (typical published ranges; verify)
Accommodation: On-campus international dormitory; typical CNY 800–1,500/month for shared rooms (verify)
Intakes: Sep (main)
Application window: Dec 1 – Mar 15 (Sep intake)
Five-campus system (Guangzhou/Zhuhai/Shenzhen); international admission via ISO portal
Source: https://www.sysu.edu.cn · compiled 2026-09-21, source verification pending
English-taught programs (1)
| Program | Level | Tuition (official) | English req. |
|---|---|---|---|
| MBA (Lingnan College English track) | Master | CNY 100,000/yr * | IELTS 6.0–6.5 / TOEFL 80–90 |
* upper end of the published range — see the profile page for the official wording.
Scholarships you can apply for
Academic strengths
China’s official discipline evaluation (MOE Degree Centre, 4th round, 2017): A+ ≈ top 2%, A ≈ top 2–5%. Methodology
| Double First-Class discipline | Evaluation |
|---|---|
| Ecology | A+ |
| Business Administration | A+ |
| Public Administration | A |
| Philosophy | A- |
| Mathematics | A- |
| Physics | A- |
| Chemistry | A- |
| Biology | A- |
| Basic Medicine | A- |
| Clinical Medicine | A- |
| Pharmacy | A- |
| Stomatology | B+ |
All evaluated disciplines (48)
- Ecology A+
- Business Administration A+
- Marxist Theory A
- Public Administration A
- Philosophy A-
- Chinese Language & Literature A-
- Chinese History A-
- Mathematics A-
- Physics A-
- Chemistry A-
- Biology A-
- Basic Medicine A-
- Clinical Medicine A-
- Pharmacy A-
- Theoretical Economics B+
- Applied Economics B+
- Law B+
- Sociology B+
- Ethnology B+
- Foreign Languages & Literatures B+
- Geography B+
- Ocean Science B+
- Computer Science B+
- Environmental Engineering B+
- Stomatology B+
- Public Health B+
- Information Management B+
- Political Science B
- Journalism B
- Archaeology B
- Statistics B
- Materials Science & Engineering B
- Electronic Science & Technology B
- Software Engineering B
- Nursing B
- Management Science & Engineering B
- Psychology B-
- World History B-
- Mechanics B-
- Optical Engineering B-
- Information & Communications Engineering B-
- Biomedical Engineering B-
- Atmospheric Science C
- Geology C
- Water Engineering C
- Chemical Engineering C
- Transportation C
- Integrative Medicine C
What its badges mean
China’s elite university initiative (147 universities designated in the 2022 MOE list)
The original 39 top universities selected in 1998 for world-class development
112 universities chosen in the 1990s for key national investment
Data sources: university international-admission pages (linked above), MOE Double First-Class list (2022), MOE Degree Centre discipline evaluation (2017). Figures marked as typical ranges are editorial estimates, dated — per-source verification in progress — full data notes.