Founded in 1958, Gannan Normal University (GNNU) is a full-time higher education institution sponsored by the People's Government of Jiangxi Province. It is a selected university for Jiangxi Province's "Double First-Class" Initiative, and a key beneficiary of the Ministry of Education's counterpart support program and the Collaborative Quality Improvement Program for Normal Education. The university focuses on cultivating high-quality normal education talents and pursuing the coordinated development of multiple disciplines. A pivotal milestone was achieved in 2024 when GNNU was accredited as a doctoral degree-granting institution, elevating its academic standing to a new level.

Nestled in Ganzhou—a national historical and cultural city and the sub-central city of Jiangxi Province—the university has developed a diversified educational layout comprising three campuses (Rongjiang, Zhanggong and Baita) and three modern industrial colleges in Nankang, Xinfeng and Dingnan districts/counties. It houses 18 faculties and several affiliated schools, with a full-time student volume of over 27,000, including more than 2,900 postgraduate students, fostering a multi-tiered education ecosystem.

GNNU boasts a high-caliber faculty of over 1,600 staffs with more than 1,300  full-time lecturers and over 610 of them in senior professional and technical titles. The faculty team includes over 20 national-level high-caliber talents such as winners of the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars and experts with special government allowances from the State Council. Many lecturers have been honored with titles as "National Excellent Teacher", laying a solid foundation for teaching and scientific research.

With teacher education as its cornerstone, GNNU has formed a pattern of coordinated development across multiple disciplines, covering 10 academic disciplines and 62 undergraduate programs. Among these, 11 are national first-class undergraduate programs, 28 are provincial first-class undergraduate programs, and all 17 teacher education programs have passed the Level-2 Accreditation by the Ministry of Education. The university now has a first-level doctoral program in Chemistry, 17 first-level master programs and 19 professional master programs. Its Chemistry discipline ranks among the top 1% of ESI global rankings.

GNNU is equipped with 4 national-level and 22 provincial-level teaching and research platforms. It has undertaken more than 2,000 research projects at all levels, including the National Key R&D Program, and won over 80 awards at or above the provincial and ministerial levels, boasting distinctive strengths in fields such as navel orange engineering technology, advanced new materials and furniture design. In addition, the university offers 9 national first-class courses and has won 8 second prizes of the National Teaching Achievement Awards, achieving the deep integration of teaching and scientific research.

Since its founding, GNNU has nurtured more than 190,000 outstanding talents, whose practicality and professionalism have earned wide recognition from society. Its students have repeatedly won top awards in international and domestic competitions, including the Gold Medal at the China International College Students' Innovation Competition and gold medals at the London Paralympic Games, demonstrating outstanding comprehensive qualities.

GNNU is deeply committed to international exchanges and cooperation. It founded the Confucius Institute at the University of Sierra Leone—the first Confucius Institute in West Africa, which was awarded the title of "Global Advanced Confucius Institute". The university has established cooperative relationships with more than 60 universities in 20 countries and launched Sino-foreign cooperative education programs. Currently, over 220 international students from 38 countries are studying at GNNU. Meanwhile, relying on its modern industrial colleges, the university contributes to the local economic and social development, practicing the philosophy of open education.

Taking the accreditation as a doctoral degree-granting institution as a new starting point, GNNU adheres to its positioning of "Rooted in Gannan, Serving Jiangxi, Facing the World" and practices the educational philosophy of "Student-Centered, Teacher-Respected, Education-Honored". It is striving to build a high-level normal university with distinctive characteristics.