Shanghai Ocean University (SHOU) is an institution of higher education with a history of over 100 years. It is formerly known as Jiangsu Provincial Fisheries School established in 1912, and developed into China’s first fisheries institute in 1952, namely Shanghai Fisheries College. In 1985, it was renamed Shanghai Fisheries University, and then renamed Shanghai Ocean University in 2008 with approval of the Ministry of Education. The university was formerly affiliated to the Ministry of Agriculture, and then transferred to joint construction of the central and local governments in 2000, but mainly administrated by Shanghai Municipal Government. In 2010, Shanghai Municipal government and State Oceanic Administration signed an agreement to mutually construct Shanghai Ocean University. Then in 2011, Shanghai government and the Ministry of Agriculture made the joint statement to build Shanghai Ocean University together. Motto of SHOU: Diligence, Sincerity, Dedication and Practicality.

The university now has 12 colleges (departments), with about 12800 full-time students enrolled for bachelor and associate programs, and 2800 postgraduates. There are more than 1100 teaching and administrative staff, including approximately 800 teaching and research staff, 400 of them with senior professional and technical titles, and about 300 supervisors for doctoral and master candidates.

The university has a complete education system, noticeable preponderant disciplines and outstanding research achievements. It has the postgraduate education, general undergraduate education, continuing education, and education of international students. The university has 2 centers for post-doctoral studies, 3 doctorate programs of first-level disciplines, 21 doctorate programs of second-level disciplines, 10 master programs of first-level disciplines, 43 master programs of second-level disciplines, and 2 programs for the professional postgraduate degree, covering 8 fields, 47 under-graduate majors, and 10 higher vocational specialties.

The university now has 1 national key discipline, 3 first-class Shanghai university disciplines (1 for A Type, and 2 for B Type), 12 key disciplines at provincial and ministerial level, 5 national characteristic specialties, 3 national superior courses, 17 Shanghai municipal superior courses, 2 Shanghai municipal superior courses for PE and health education, 5 demonstrative English courses of Shanghai Municipality, 1 teaching team at national level and 4 at municipal level, 1 experimental teaching demonstration center at national level and 2 at municipal level. The university has won 4 first prizes and 8 second prizes for teaching achievements in Shanghai Municipality. Since the 12th Five-Year Plan, SHOU has made a number of breakthroughs in research of the natural sciences and humanities, philosophy and social sciences, and made major contributions in aquaculture, marine fishery, aquatic product processing, food safety, low-temperature logistics of agricultural products, and fishing economics and management, and has won 2 awards for scientific and technological advancement at national level, 20-plus awards at provincial level, and 3 awards for policy-making consulting in Shanghai Municipality.

The university has good educational facilities, well-equipped laboratories and special experimental equipment. It has the National Research Center for Engineering Technology of Pelagic Fishery, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Teaching of Fisheries, and National University Science Park; it has a number of key labs of the Ministry of Education, such as the Lab for Excavation and Utilization of Aquatic Genetic Resources and Lab for Sustainable Development of Oceanic Fishery Resources (jointly constructed by province and ministry); it also has a number of key labs of the Ministry of Agriculture, such as the Key Open Lab for Aquatic Genetic Resources and Their Utilization, and the Key Lab for Risk Assessment of Storage and Preservation of Aquatic Products. The university also has a number of centers and platforms of the Ministry of Agriculture, such as the National Pathogen Databank of Aquatic Animals, the Genetic Breeding Center of the Blunt-snout Brea, Research Center of Fish Nutrition and Environmental Ecology, Research Center for Fishery Development Strategy, Branch of the Center for Research and Development of Processing Technology of Freshwater Aquatic Products (Shanghai), the Center for Quality Supervision, Inspection and Testing of Refrigerator and Refrigeration Equipment, Station for Observational Experiment of Oceanic Fishery Resources, and Training Center for Distant-Water Fisheries.

The university has built up a number of international cooperative platforms, such as International Ocean Research Center, Sino-US (SHOU-NOAA) Oceanic Fishery Remote Sensing and Information Research Center, and the Lab for Freshwater Fish Processing and Utilization. The university also has a host of jointly built research platforms at the provincial and ministerial level, such as the Lab for Adaptive Organisms and Biological Alliance in Polar Oceans, and Marine Economic Research Center. The university boasts a Lab for Vessel Ballast Water certified by CNAS and CMA, first of its kind in China. Besides, the university has a number of research platforms at the collegiate level, including the Field Observation Station of Oceanic Eco-system in Yangshan Port, the Engineering Technology Center for Hydrographic Surveying and Utilization, and the Food Safety Research Center. The university has more than 50 teaching practice bases nationwide, including one in Pudong, Shanghai and one in Xiangshan County, Zhejiang Province.

The university has built a close cooperation relationship with universities countries as U.S.A, Japan, Russia, Australia, Korea and areas as Taiwan and Hongkong, as well as with several international organizations. It has signed cooperation agreements with 73 universities and research institutes in 23 countries. The university has exchanged overseas students with universities in several countries, and there are currently 145 international students studying at SHOU. The university has participated in Sino-US cooperative projects on marine living resources for a long period, and established friendly cooperation with such international organizations as the FAO, Asian Fisheries Society, and Management Center of International Aquatic Living Resources.

The aim of SHOU in the new age: By 2020, it will develop into a world-renowned special university with distinctive advantages in such disciplines as marine science and technology, aquaculture, food science, etc. with science, engineering, agriculture, economics, art, administration, and law developing coordinately, cultivate innovative versatile talented graduates with international vision, and lay equal emphasis on scientific research and teaching.