The Department of Applied Foreign Language Studies grew out of the College English and College Russian Teaching and Research Sections of the former Department of Foreign Languages. In 1985, the two sections were consolidated into the Public Foreign Languages Teaching and Research Division, an independent department-level academic unit. In 1986, the unit was renamed the Department of Applied Foreign Language Studies.

The Department is responsible for providing foreign language instruction to undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students across Nanjing University. It currently has 69 faculty and staff members, including more than 50 professors and associate professors, nine of whom are full professors.

Over the years, the Department has established itself as one of China’s leading centers for university foreign language teaching and research. Several of its professors hold senior appointments in major national and provincial academic and professional organizations, including:

·President, College English Teaching and Research Association of China

·Vice President, Chinese Association of Logic

·President, Pronunciation Teaching and Research Committee, China Association for Comparative Studies of English and Chinese

·President, Jiangsu Association for Foreign Language Teaching and Research in Higher Education

·Vice President, China English Language Education Association

·Vice President, Discourse Studies Committee, China Association for Comparative Studies of English and Chinese

·Vice President, Jiangsu Association of Foreign Languages and Linguistics

·Vice Chair, Digital Curriculum Resources Research Branch, China Association of Higher Education

·Vice Chair, Committee on Computer-Assisted Foreign Language Teaching, China English Language Education Association

·Member, National College Foreign Languages Teaching Steering Committee, Ministry of Education

·Member, National College English Testing Committee