The history of physical education at Fudan University traces back to the early years of the university. At present, the Fudan University Department of Physical Education is composed of five sections: Volleyball Teaching Unit, Basketball & Football Teaching Unit, Comprehensive Teaching Unit, Mass Sports Office and Administrative Office. The Department of Physical Education is responsible for teaching general physical education curriculum, conducting sports science research, training sports teams, holding mass sports events and performing student exercise performance assessment, etc. There are 59 faculty members, including 54 teaching staff, among which are 4 professors and 32 associate professors. 4 hold doctoral degrees.
General physical education curriculum is divided into compulsory courses, elective courses and summertime elective courses. Compulsory courses are for Year 1 and Year 2 undergraduate students; elective courses are for Year 3 and Year 4 undergraduate students and all postgraduate students; and summertime elective courses are available to all undergraduate students. Every year, we offer nearly 600 general physical education courses which cover 28 types of sports such as ball games, aerobics, sports dancing, swimming, fencing, traditional Chinese sports and martial arts.
Sports teams are divided into two categories: high-level sports teams and sports society teams. There are seven high-level sports teams: men’s volleyball, women’s volleyball, track and field, martial arts, swimming, football and shooting. There are more than 20 teams initiated by student sports societies: volleyball, basketball, football, tennis, table tennis, baseball, softball, golf, boat racing, aerobics, Tai chi and archery. These teams represent the athletic side of Fudan University and participate in various university students' sports events at home and abroad.
The department holds a kaleidoscopic spectrum of mass sports events, including annual university sports meeting, school-level sports events, School Cup, College Cup, Freshmen Cup, Graduation Cup, “Fun Run”, Wulin Assembly, Mr. Muscle, etc. Most contests involve the types of sports taught in general physical education courses and so far more than 10,000 students have participated in these contests. 42 sports societies, with over 8000 members, are coached by the department.
The Department of Physical Education will further optimize its curriculum, improve its teaching quality and research facilities, and strengthen faculty development and personnel training to coordinate with Fudan’s aim of building a world-class university.
