Began in 1935, the graduate education in Wuhan University has until today a history of 70 years. The first batch of graduate students was enrolled in 1955. Then, due to the influence of the Cultural Revolution, which broke the recruitment for 10 years, the graduate education resumed in 1978. In the year of 1981, Wuhan University was granted among the first batch of the State Council nominated Doctoral/Master degree conferring institutions, and became one of the first institutions of higher education establishing pilot graduate school in 1984. In 2002, Wuhan University was granted among 34 universities to independently delimit the accepting line for second-round examination.  

Rooted in the profound richness of the centennial Wuhan University, graduate education bathed in the spring breeze of reform and opening-up, forged ahead with determination, and brought forth the new through the old. With fruitful accumulation of operational experiences and distinct characteristics, graduate education in Wuhan University has gained remarkable achievements. Today, a comprehensive system of degree and graduate education has founded featuring complete discipline coverage, well acknowledged advantage and characteristics, diverse degree type, renowned supervisor team, integrated management system, complete teaching facility, guaranteed education quality etc. Especially since the merger in the year of 2000, Wuhan University has deepened reform, strengthened management, focused even more heavily on graduate education quality, and clearly defined the concept for graduate education development as “Quality as the lifeline, Innovation as the theme”. Through years of reform of graduate education and development at various levels, the graduate school has been making all out efforts in building “Quality Project of Wuhan University graduate education”. In the realization of the project, graduate education quality has achieved steady improvement, with not only a stable one-time employment rate above 95%, but a constant enhancement of graduates’ academic thesis and high level thesis publications. By the end of 2013, twenty one dissertations were awarded “The National 100 Outstanding Dissertation Prize”.

Building a strong team of supervisors is the key to graduate education development. Wuhan University has paid special attention to the construction of such team, and has proposed a Dual Supervisor system, launched supervisor school, and established saloon for supervisor from different disciplines in the hope of forging a more comprehensive supervisor management mechanism. In 2012, Wuhan University carried out a bold reform on supervisor enrollment system, which adopted a “division of election and engagement, dynamic position-holding” principle. Thus, a transition from identity management to position management for doctoral supervisors has been realized, and a larger team of supervisors and a more rational structure has been achieved. Until now, among more than 1，300 doctoral supervisors and more than 2，800 master supervisors, there are 8 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, 8 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 3 academicians of International Academy of Sciences for Europe and Asia (IASEA), 9 distinguished honorable professors in Humanities and Social Sciences, 22 principal scientists of 973 Project (including Key Project of Chinese National Programs for Fundamental Research and Development), 5 creative groups of National Nature Science Foundation of China, 43 receivers of China National Funds for Distinguished Young Scientists, and 15 winners of National Teaching Award.

In reforming graduates enrollment system, in order to enhance the quality of the enrolled undergraduates, and to improve the binary section model of allocation in enrolling target, Wuhan University has adopted multiple measures, including initiating promotion day for graduate enrollment, organizing promotion teams to visit key universities to conduct propaganda on enrollment policies, and holding summer camps for outstanding undergraduates. The number of applicants for Wuhan University ranked the first or second place for many consecutive years, while the number of undergraduates recommended for enrollment, with a record high of 1，420 in 2013 also increased year by year. In the meantime, selection methods have been optimized in such policies as “Direct Doctoral Study Program”, “Master-Doctor Combined Program”, “Entrance Evaluation”, “Separate Selection of Excellent Students” ，etc. in the hope of actively exploring graduate selection mechanism of our own characteristics.

In terms of graduate development, Wuhan University has adopted supervisor responsible mechanism featuring an orientation of scientific research, knowledge initiation and technology innovation, built a new graduate subsidy system, and has innovated development models constantly and set up a better platform for interdisciplinary talent development by carrying out a multiplied and drive-through mode primary of direct doctoral study, and 1+4, 2+3, and 3+3 different combination of master-doctor study program. In 2011, Wuhan University launched “the pilot interdisciplinary top-notch doctoral graduate innovative training project”, integrating the major research projects of national R & D into the top-notch innovative personnel training process. In addition, Wuhan University has been carrying out the scientific research oriented principle in talent cultivation, and actively create a academic environment and atmosphere conducive to the growth of top-notch creative talents, encourage graduates to bold innovation, and constantly increase its top-notch innovative personnel training investment; on the other hand, through joint training agreement with foreign high level universities and participation in the government funded overseas study, Wuhan University vigorously explored the channels for international education, and constantly improve the internationalization level of graduate education. In professional degree graduate education, through perfecting rules and regulations, strengthening management, paying close attention to the quality, the scientific development of the educational scale and quality in professional degree graduate was achieved. Other measures include the implementation of “examination after interview” policy in the selection of professional degree graduates; the formation of professional degree graduate cultivation model based on high-level application-type innovative talent training pilot area and focusing on case-study based teaching, practice and internship, and seminars on frontiers of the discipline. At present, in the 39 categories of professional degrees set up by the country, Wuhan University is capable of recruiting and cultivating professional degree graduates in 31 professional categories and 22 engineering categories, the overall size being top in the country. Since 2014, the school has greatly increased the amount of the graduate award, which means that 100% full-time academic master, doctoral and professional masters with no predetermined employment can get their academic scholarship, and 30% can earn an extra of 2，000 to 6，000 yuan after the payment of the tuition fees. In the financial aid system, the newly established national financial aid standards compared with the general scholarship in the past has greatly improved, with doctoral students per year from 18，000 yuan to 22，000 yuan; master students per academic year from 5，000 yuan to 6，000 yuan. In addition, the student academic innovation award grand prize amounting 50，000 yuan has increased to 80，000 yuan, the first prize amounting 24，000 yuan to 50，000 yuan, the second prize from 12，000 to 40，000 yuan. Full-time doctoral students with no predetermined employment can apply for scholarship and financial aid amounting 32，000 yuan to 148，000 yuan each year, full-time master students with no predetermined employment an aid from 14，000 to 118，000 yuan.

In degree construction, relying on the school abundant educational foundation and strength, graduate education in Wuhan University is gradually forming a disciplinary system of better structure and complete categories of discipline, which can in turn create a more favorable environment and atmosphere of research for the high level top-notch innovative talents. By April 2014, Wuhan University has 43 first level disciplines authorized to offer doctorate degree, 248 specialties authorized to offer doctorate degree (including clinical medicine, 2 oral medicine professional degree, 47 self-installed doctorate degrees), 58 first level disciplines authorized to offer master’s degree, 342 specialties authorized to offer master’s degree (including 31 professional master’s degree and 62 self-installed master’s degree in business administration, public management, law, engineering, accounting, clinical medicine, oral medicine, senior business administration), and 38 post doctoral research station.

In the new century, graduate education in Wuhan University highlighted "innovation" and "quality" as the two major themes. In accordance with the standard of "three types of talents", a large number of high level, high quality, diversified, innovative and internationalized top-notch graduates have been cultivated, and a number of international advanced landmark achievements have been harvested. Wuhan University has become one of the most influential and demonstrative base for national degree and graduate development. As of April 2014, the university has a total of 13429 master graduates and 6789 doctoral graduates currently registered, among which many foreign students come from the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Japan, Korea, Burma, Nigeria and other countries. Since 2000, Wuhan University has more than 40，000 master students graduated from the university, more than 60，000 master students and more than 9，000 doctoral students have been awarded a degree. Graduates from Wuhan University are very popular among employers from all walks of life for their broad scope of knowledge, solid theoretical foundation, outstanding working capacity, and a strong sense of responsibility. Most of them have become the backbone of the institution, and many of them have grown famous scholars, experts, government officials and entrepreneurs, etc., making great contributions for the national construction and social progress.      

The Graduate School has 6 departments. The Department of Admission is in charge of student's enrollment. Nowadays, we are expanding our ways to get more excellent undergraduates to further their studies here in WHU, for example, setting up talents summer camp and establishing 5-year accelerate program. The Department of Teaching and Academic Training Affairs mainly handles with teaching affairs, students’ academic developments or other related to student's education. We put lots of efforts in encouraging our students to publish articles on the journals home and abroad. Every year we send out hundreds of students to international conferences. And we also invite experts and professors from renowned unversities to give lectures to our students, aiming at broadening their international academic horrizon. The Department of Degree Awarding is who set up the standard of getting degree and hold degree awarding ceremony. The Department of Quality Assessment, as a new branch, helps monitoring our education quality and evaluating our fruits. The General Office backups the running of the whole graduate school.