Ocean University of China is a top-ranked comprehensive university in China that has long been supported by the Chinese government throughits “Project 985,”“Project 211,” and “Project Double First-Class,” all highly selective funding programs for the nation's prestigious higher educational institutions.
Legal education at OUC dates backtothe former Institute of Marine Law established in 1980. In September of 2018, the OUC Law School was spun off from the former School of Law and Political Science to become a stand-alone school that offers the full suite of degree programs in law, including the traditional LL.B, LL.M, J.M, Ph.D in law programs as well an “LLB-BA in law” dual degree program and an international LLM program on environmental and natural resource protection law. OUC law graduates go on to important and coveted positions in the nation's judicial system, administrative agencies, state-owned and private enterprises, higher educational institutions and leading think tanks; many also devote their career to service areas such as Xinjiang and Tibet.
The Law School's faculty members include both nationally acclaimed experts and rising young scholars in such areas as legal theories, criminal justice, procedural laws, international law, and environmental law. 90% of the faculty members received their legal training from top Chinese law schools. About one-third of the faculty members also have received their graduate law degrees from or studied as visitors at prestigious institutions in the U.S. and Europe. The Law School received a “B” level grade (top 20-30%) from China's Ministry of Education during the most recent round of its nationwide review of law programs, and it ranked #41 in a recent nationwide ranking by a leading independent agency.
Through its partnership with the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, OUC law school runs the first and only Sino-U.S. dual degree undergraduate program that offers students the opportunity to study Chinese and U.S. legal systems in four years and graduate with both an LL.B. from OUC and a B.A. in law from U of A. Since its inception, the program has been known for its exceptional academic rigor and become increasingly popular among students, parents, and China’s legal circle. The first class of students graduated in July 2019, with about 70% admitted to prestigious graduate law programs in China, U.S., U.K. and Australia. Besides the dual-degree program with University of Arizona, OUC Law School has also established collaborative arrangements with many top law schools around the globe to facilitate faculty and student exchanges.
