The doctoral programs of Beijing Normal University include: educational principles, curriculum and teaching theory, educational history, comparative education, preschool education, higher education, adult education, vocational and technical education, special education, educational technology, teacher education, internet education (formerly distance education), educational policy and educational law, educational economy and management.

Beijing Normal University is a national key university directly under the Ministry of Education of People's Republic of China (PRC), which is jointly built by the Ministry of Education and Beijing. It ranks among the national "double first-class", "985 Project" and "2 1 1 Project" and is one of the first ten key universities built during the Seventh Five-Year Plan and the Eighth Five-Year Plan.