Nanchang University (NCU) is a comprehensive university listed among the “World First-class Disciplines” in China's “Double First-Class” Initiative. NCU, as a whole, falls into the category of the First-Class Universities Construction Project of Jiangxi Province. The School of Tourism at NCU traces its origins to the Tourism discipline established in 1993. It became an independent college in 2000 before being integrated into the School of Economics and Management in 2003. As the first institution in Jiangxi to offer an undergraduate program in tourism, the School now serves as a key talent development base and a leading tourism think tank for the province. On May 18, 2017, with support from the Jiangxi Provincial Government and the former Provincial Tourism Development Commission, NCU and the Jiangxi Tourism Group achieved a strategic partnership to establish a new and distinctive school—one characterized by a pioneering structure, agile mechanisms, high-impact outputs, and a global outlook in tourism.

The School of Tourism is organized into two disciplines: Tourism Management, and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Exhibitions) Economics & Management. Each offers a corresponding undergraduate degree program. At the graduate level, the School confers two academic master's degrees—one in Tourism Management and another in Chinese History (with a specialization in Cultural Heritage and Tourism Planning)—alongside a professional Master of Tourism Administration (MTA). The Tourism Management undergraduate program is recognized as one of the first distinguished brand specialties in Jiangxi Province and a provincial pilot program for comprehensive disciplinary reform. In 2020, it was listed as a National First-Class Undergraduate Program, and in 2022, it received the highest ranking—Five-Star Undergraduate Program—in Jiangxi Province.

The School sustains a dynamic research system through five core institutes and centers. These include the Jiangxi Red Tourism Research Center, designated as a national pilot for innovative red tourism development; the Tourism Research Institute of Nanchang University, a provincial key research base in humanities and social sciences and a recognized think tank in the Chinese Think Tank Index (CTTI); the Collaborative Innovation Center of Constructing Jiangxi Tourism Advancing Province, a provincial research base in philosophy and social sciences; the Institute of Culture and Tourism of Nanchang University; and the Nanchang University—Jiangxi Provincial Museum Collaborative Research Center for Revolutionary Relics.

The School has 35 staff members, including 3 professors and 12 associate professors. Among them, 21 hold doctoral degree and 9 have international academic experience. It includes one member of the National Teaching Steering Committee for Tourism Management undergraduate programs, and several have received provincial-level or higher honors. The School has hosted over 10 national-level tourism research projects and more than 130 provincial or ministerial projects, including key projects in Jiangxi's economic and social development, alongside over 120 industry-sponsored projects. Since the School's re-establishment, it has achieved breakthroughs in major competitive grants such as National Social Science Fund projects (including key and major projects), National Publication Fund projects, as well as National First-Class Undergraduate Program and National First-Class Course designations. According to the 2025 Best Chinese Majors Ranking, the School's Tourism Management program nationally ranks 19^th , and its MICE Economics & Management program ranks 10^th—both placing first in Jiangxi Province.

The School integrates regional red cultural resource with values-based education through signature experiential programs. Through flagship programs like the Red Culture Docent Competition and Summer Rural Service Initiatives, students engage with China's modern history and cultivate a strong sense of civic responsibility. This commitment has earned both institutional and individual recognition. In 2023, the young volunteers' civic engagement team “In the Footsteps, Forward Together” was honored as a National Exemplary Team, with their work highlighted in national media. Students have also received prestigious awards such as Provincial Outstanding Youth. The school-level Staff Union attained the top national honor—National Model Staff Home—in 2024, underscoring the supportive and fulfilling environment that defines the School of Tourism.

Aligned with NCU's vision of becoming a world-class university anchored in Jiangxi and distinguished by Chinese character, the School of Tourism is committed to advancing the guiding principles set forth for the tourism sector. The School will strengthen collaboration across government, industry, and academia, actively integrate social resources into students teaching, and pursue an open and globally engaged approach. With undergraduate and postgraduate education at the core, the School coordinates continuing education and professional training to form a multi-level, systematic educational framework. The School's mission is to cultivate future sector leaders, project directors, professional managers, and cultural-creative strategists, thereby contributing to socio-economic development at both the national and regional levels.