Dalian Polytechnic University（former Dalian Institute of Light Industry）, founded in 1958, was the only university of higher education in Northeast China specializing in light industry and textile. Going through the development of 50 years, great progress has been made in enhancing education capability and quality step by step through its efforts and our university has become the personnel training base and R&D center of consumer industries in Northeast China.  It follows the guiding principle of course-orientation, quality, innovation, and characteristics. As a result, it has developed into a comprehensive university combined with engineering, science, arts, management and economics, centering on engineering and specializing in light industry, food, textiles, and art design.

Our University consists of four branches campuses and covers an area of 1,064 mu with a total building area of 465,000 square meters. The library occupies an area of 27,000 square meters and its volume holdings are 592,000. There are 23 intergraded laboratories (including 3 internship laboratories on campus). 30,000,000 yuan was invested on the construction of the campus network to realize the mutual connection between the library’s local area network and campus area network.The present number of full-time undergraduates, postgraduates and foreign students is more than 17,000. There are 867 professional teachers in our university, including119 professors, 266 associate professors, 1 academician of double-professor of China Academy of Science, 2 academicians of double-professor of China Academy of Engineering.　

In recent three years, the initial employment rates of graduates have remained over 92%. Our university was awarded “the Excellent Unit of High Initial Employment Rate of Liaoning Universities” in 2003, “the Excellent Unit of Graduates Employment Evaluation of Liaoning Universities” in 2005 and “the Outstanding Contribution Award of Graduates Employment Evaluation of Liaoning Universities” in 2006. Now our university comprises of 13 secondary schools, 1 independent School (School of Art and Information Engineering) and 2 teaching departments: Physical Education Department and Modern Education Technology Center. There are 28 Master’s Degree programs and 38 Bachelor’s Degree programs, including 18 programs in engineering, 10 programs in literature, 4 programs in science, 5 programs in management and 1 program in economics. Light Chemistry Engineering, Food Science and Engineering, Art Design and Product Design are the four programs under the direct control of our country. Fashion design and engineering is the provincial demonstration program. Biological engineering, light-chemistry engineering, textile engineering, art design, fashion design, material science engineering and food science and engineering have become the influential advantageous programs in their own industries or in the northeastern region.

Since 2000, Dalian Polytechnic University has received 16 provincial awards in teaching accomplishments, 15 prizes in multimedia teaching above the provincial level, and 12 courses have been appraised as the excellent courses of Liaoning Province. The teachers and students majored in Fashion Design have achieved Education Awards and Rookie Awards respectively in many domestic fashion design competitions and their reputation has been highly valued both at home and abroad. In December 2005 our university passed the Assessment of Undergraduate Teaching Level held by the Ministry of Education and achieved excellent result. It was the first of the seven undergraduate universities directly controlled by the former Ministry of Light Industry that achieved excellent result.

Our university has undertaken national “973” Project, national “863” Project and 42 items of National Natural Science Foundation programs during the recent years. 2,287 academic dissertations have been published, and 109 items of patent rights of invention have been applied. The annual average science and technology funds arrive to 30,000,000 yuan. 32 programs have been awarded provincial or national technical prize. In three consecutive years, our university won the first prize of Technology Invention Prizes by the government of Liaoning Province. Both in 2003 and 2005, our university won the second prize of National Technology Invention twice and as one of the application of research results, Vladivostok peptide Capsules, has become a brand product in Dalian and created the output value of several hundred million yuan. Three programs nominated by the Ministry of Education were received the second prize of National Science and Technology Award. Moreover, there are 79 municipal-level academic achievements and 3 scientific research teams identified as innovation teams of university by the Education Department of Liaoning Province. Our university has two provincial key subjects labs (fermentation engineering and pulping and papermaking), three provincial centers (the aquatic products deep-processing engineering technology research center of Liaoning province, the foodstuff engineering technological research center of Liaoning province and the textile test center of Liaoning province) and two research centers on the municipal level (Dalian agricultural /aquatic products deep-processing technological research center and Dalian natural physiological active biological modification research center).

Our university has formed its own characteristics and advantages in the field of fermentation engineering, foodstuff science and engineering, textile engineering, pulping and papermaking, natural activated matter distilling and separating technology , modified natural fiber and deep-processing, subsidiary agricultural (aquatic) products deep-processing, green chemistry and environment protection technology, papermaking equipments and necessary technology, textile and fashion CAD technology, city construction and environment design, industry and art design.

There are a wide variety of clubs or associations for students, such as DV Club, Computer Associates, Street Dance Association, English club, Folk Arts Club, Tennis Association, Table Tennis Association, Breeze Poetry Societies, Association of Ball Games, Photography Association, Taekwondo Association, Kung Fu Association, Association of knowledge innovation,Pop Association, Eloquence Association, Calligraphy Association, Public Relations Association, Yushan Environment Friendship Association, Philatelic Association, Movie Club, Drama Club, Tourism Culture Association, etc.Our university has cooperated with more than 30 universities in 20 countries and districts including US, UK, France, Canada, Austrian, New Zealand, Japan and Korea, etc. Effective exchanging and cooperation have been made in the field of undergraduate and postgraduate education, teachers’ training, scientific research, and industry development. Doctor Kurt Wüthrich, the Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry and Jacques Mouclier, chairman of French Fashion Association and other well-known experts in the world have been invited as the reputation professors or guest professors of our university. Cooperating with Edinburgh Institute of New Zealand, the school?? of Edinburgh International Civil Aviation of Dalian Polytechnic University was set up.The international courses and employment resources of international air routes has been introduced, which has filled the domestic gap in this field.  Our university has successfully initiated the program of co-cultivating French overseas students with French EPITECH University, which has added a new page to the academic communication between China and France.