The School of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development at Renmin University of China was established in 2004, based on the former Department of Agricultural Economics. The original Department of Agricultural Economics was the earliest and most influential department focusing on “agriculture, rural areas, and farmers” issues among China’s comprehensive key universities. The school was granted the right to confer doctoral degrees in 1986 and was recognized as a National Priority Discipline by the former National Education Commission of China in 1988. In 2000, it received the right to confer doctoral degrees in the first-level discipline of Agricultural and Forestry Economics and Management. In 2007, it was again recognized as a National Priority Discipline. In 2017, the discipline of Agricultural and Forestry Economics and Management was among the first to be selected for China’s “Double First-Class” initiative.

The college is currently the only one among Chinese universities that focuses on agricultural economics and rural development as its core teaching and research areas. It serves as the chair and secretariat of the Ministry of Education’s Teaching Guidance Committee for Agricultural Economics and Management. Additionally, it is the only college that was both a key discipline under the former “Project 211” and a Philosophy and Social Sciences Innovation Base for Chinese Rural Development under the former “Project 985.”

The college has a comprehensive talent training system, spanning from undergraduate to master’s, doctoral programs, and postdoctoral research stations. It offers two undergraduate majors: Agricultural and Forestry Economics Management, and Rural Regional Development. There are six academic master’s and doctoral programs: Agricultural Economics Management, Rural Development, Forestry Economics Management, Food Economics Management, Natural Resources Management, and Technology Economics and Management. Additionally, there are two professional master’s programs: Agriculture and Agricultural and Rural Management (MAA). The college is dedicated to researching theoretical and practical issues in China’s agricultural economics and rural development. It is an important training base for comprehensive and applied economic management talents in the agricultural sector and a significant academic research center for agricultural and forestry economics management in China.

The training of students in this college is closely integrated with other disciplines at Renmin University of China, fostering mutual development and demonstrating significant complementary advantages. Renmin University of China boasts top-tier disciplines closely related to this college, such as economics, management, sociology, and law, all of which are comprehensive and have leading academic strength in China. Additionally, the university’s numerous national key research bases directly enhance the undergraduate and graduate teaching of this college. The faculty is primarily composed of young and middle-aged teachers, especially young teachers, all of whom hold doctoral degrees and have experience in overseas study and visits. The team is efficient, well-funded, and their research achievements are at the forefront in China.

We adhere to the tradition of closely integrating theory with practice, striving for theoretical innovation and serving major decision-making. In 2008, the first China Economic Theory Innovation Award was presented to our honorary dean Du Runsheng, the China Rural Development Research Group, and several individuals for their theoretical contributions to the rural household contract responsibility system. Among the key contributors were Zhou Cheng, Zhang Guangyou, and members of the China Rural Development Research Group, including Yang Xun, Chen Xiwen, and Bai Nansheng, all of whom are either our faculty members or graduates.

Additionally, our college has made significant contributions to the development of China's agricultural and forestry economics management discipline through several pioneering theories and research efforts. These include the unique land economics theory centered on the 'Three Blocks' concept, the systematically proposed theory of the price scissors between industrial and agricultural products, the creation of the agricultural technology economics discipline system, and research on theoretical and practical issues in the reform of China's forest rights system in the new era.

Since 1994, we have established a poverty alleviation and development experimental zone in the Taihang Mountains, using rural comprehensive development theories to guide the development of impoverished areas. This has created a classic anti-poverty model with Renmin University of China's characteristics. The first Central Forestry Work Conference held in 2009 highly praised our long-term in-depth research and contributions to advancing the reform of China's collective forest rights system, highlighting our role in supporting central major decision-making.

For over half a century, the Department of Agricultural Economics at Renmin University of China has thrived amidst challenges, leveraging the university’s top-tier social science research environment to create a legacy of excellence in China’s rural reform and development. The establishment of the School of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development has provided us with an even broader platform for academic and research pursuits. We are confident and capable of making greater contributions to the rise of China’s agricultural and rural economy in the new century, as well as to the comprehensive development and advancement of both China’s and the world’s economies.