Founded in 1955, the College of Automotive Engineering at Jilin University traces its origins to the Changchun Automotive and Tractor Institute, which was established through the relocation and integration of relevant departments from Huazhong Institute of Technology, Jiaotong University, and Shandong Institute of Technology. After seven decades of development and the dedicated efforts of successive generations of automotive pioneers, the College has become a premier hub in China for fostering high-caliber talent, conducting foundational and cutting-edge research, and advancing high-level international collaboration in the field of automotive engineering. It has played an irreplaceable role in the growth of China’s automotive industry and the enhancement of its indigenous innovation capabilities, earning the distinguished title of "Cradle of China’s Automotive Engineering Talent."

The College was among the first institutions to be designated as a key construction unit under the "211 Project," a first-tier platform under the "985 Project," and an independent discipline constructor under the "Double First-Class" initiative. It was also among the first in China to be authorized to confer master’s degrees (1978) and doctoral degrees (1981), selected as a National Key Discipline (1987), approved to establish one of the first state key laboratories in automotive engineering (1989), chosen as a National Featured Specialty (2009), included in the inaugural "Excellent Engineer Education and Training Program" (2010), and designated as a National First-Class Undergraduate Program (2019). Its Engineering discipline ranks within the top 1‰ globally in ESI, and it received an A rating in the fifth round of discipline evaluations.

The College boasts a faculty and research team of over 240 members, led by Professor Guo Konghui, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. Among them are 148 full-time faculty, including 73 professors and 67 associate professors. The College is home to one Chinese Academy of Engineering academician, four national leading talents, two national young talents, one Innovation Team of the Changjiang Scholar Program by the Ministry of Education, one member of the Discipline Evaluation Group of the Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council, one Ministry of Education Trans-Century Outstanding Talent, four Ministry of Education New Century Outstanding Talents, one Leading Talent in Scientific and Technological Innovation from the Ministry of Transport, one Changbai Outstanding Talent in Science and Technology Innovation, six Fellows of the China Society of Automotive Engineers, five recipients of the China Association for Science and Technology Young Talent Lift Program, one recipient of the National Postdoctoral Innovative Talent Support Program, and 35 Tang Aoqing Scholars of Jilin University.

As the leading institution for several higher education professional organizations in China’s automotive industry, the College has consistently shaped the development and reform of the nation’s automotive talent cultivation system. It maintains a comprehensive education framework spanning undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs, including two postdoctoral research stations, five doctoral degree authorization points, seven master’s degree authorization points, and three undergraduate programs. Vehicle Engineering and Energy and Power Engineering are National First-Class Undergraduate Programs, while Industrial Design is a Provincial First-Class Undergraduate Program. The College consistently ranks among the top in China in terms of educational scale and quality. Currently, it enrolls nearly 400 doctoral students, close to 800 master’s students, and over 2,000 undergraduate students. To date, it has graduated more than 40,000 professionals, counting among its distinguished alumni Professor Guo Konghui, Professor Li Jun, and Professor Wang Yunpeng—all academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

In 2007, the College established the "Jilin University Student Racing Team," which has since become China’s largest, most comprehensive, and most influential student racing practice and education platform. In 2023, the College built the "New Fourization" (electrification, intelligence, networking, and sharing) Automotive Practice and Education Base—Yuanmeng Gongchang—which has been recognized as a National Automotive Science Popularization Base. In the Formula Student China competition, the team achieved a legendary "six consecutive championships" and a "seven-time champion" record, including a "three-peat double championship" in both fuel and electric categories, and has repeatedly stood atop the podium in international competitions.

The College currently hosts 13 national, provincial, and ministerial-level research platforms, including the State Key Laboratory of Automotive Chassis Integration and Bionics and the National Automotive Product and Parts Certification Laboratory. The State Key Laboratory of Automotive Chassis Integration and Bionics (formerly the State Key Laboratory of Automotive Dynamic Simulation) is one of China’s first state key laboratories dedicated to applied basic research in automotive engineering. Approved for construction in 1989, it developed China’s first development-type automotive performance simulator in 1996, passing national evaluation with the commendation "world-advanced, Asia-leading" and officially opening to the international community. The laboratory successfully passed consecutive evaluations of state key laboratories in engineering in 2003, 2008, 2013, and 2018. In 2022, following optimization and restructuring, it was approved as a national key laboratory in the manufacturing field.

Focusing on global frontiers in automotive technology and addressing strategic demands for green, intelligent, and lightweight vehicles, the College conducts pioneering research that drives innovation in the automotive industry. Its research capabilities and outcomes have grown steadily, positioning it among the top domestic institutions in its field. Over the past five years, the College has led more than 50 projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, over 300 provincial/ministerial and above vertical research projects, and nearly 600 industry-funded horizontal projects, with total research funding exceeding RMB 620 million. Since 2000, it has received three second-place National Science and Technology Progress Awards, two provincial/ministerial Special Prizes, and 22 first-place provincial/ministerial awards.

Through the dedicated efforts of generations of automotive engineers and scholars, the College of Automotive Engineering has forged its present glory. As it advances into a new historical era, the College is striding forward with determination toward its vision of becoming a leading, world-class research-oriented institution both in China and on the global stage.