Guangdong University of Foreign Studies is one of the prestigious universities of international studies in China and one of the key institutions of higher learning in Guangdong Province. It is situated in the northern suburb of Guangzhou, a city with a long history and a rich cultural legacy, as well as an economic hub in south China. The main campus lies to the north of the Baiyun Hills and the other campus is not far away. With an elegant environment featuring green trees, fresh air, and a limpid creek with small bridges across it, the University is an ideal place to study.

The University was set up in June 1995 by merging the then Guangzhou Institute of Foreign Languages and Guangzhou Institute of Foreign Trade. The former was established in 1965, then one of the three institutes of foreign languages under the direct jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education. The latter was founded in 1980, at the time one of the four institutions of its kind directly under the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation.

Currently the University offers 29 BA-degree courses in 12 faculties and 5 departments, which fall into five disciplines, namely literature, economics, management, law and engineering. The University has been actively pioneering the flexibility in degree course development in order to meet the needs of rapid social and economic changes. A new mode of education is therefore taking shape, in which different subjects of the five disciplines complement one another in coordinated development. As early as 1981, the University (then Guangzhou Institute of Foreign Languages) won the qualification to confer the Master's degree and later in 1986 it became an institution eligible to award the Doctoral degree. This stands it among the few that were the earliest entitled to do so after the country resumed the enrolment of postgraduate students. Of all the degree courses offered to the students, three are named key specialties at the provincial level and one at the national level. In addition, we have two state-designated research centres, one for research in humanities and social sciences and the other for training students of minor languages.

Our students come from over 20 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in the country. And only the best candidates have a chance to be admitted to the undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Graduates from this university are expected to be able to take part in international competition with their ideological attainment and expertise. They will be advanced specialists in their field on the one hand, and developed in general qualities on the other hand, good at using the foreign language they have learned and skilful in applying information technology. As what they learn here is in high demand, our graduates enjoy a higher employment rate than graduates from most other universities.

At present we have a 1300-strong staff, including over 250 full/associate professors and 330 lecturers. In addition, we employ more than 40 experts/lecturers from other countries. Altogether over 20,000 students are studying at the university, of whom about 9,400 are undergraduates and postgraduates, the other11,000 being self-taught learners receiving training here before taking the exams, foreign students learning Chinese, and trainees of other categories.

As our name suggests, we attach great importance to, and actively conduct, academic and cultural exchanges with overseas institutions. Such exchanges and collaborations are on the increase and cover more and more fields. We have so far established links with over 40 universities, academic institutions and cultural organizations in other countries and regions. They include the United States of America, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Canada, Australia, Japan, Russia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Republic of Korea, Hong Kong and Macao.