Xiangtan University, called Xiangda for short, was founded in 1958. It is one of the first batch of 16 comprehensive national key universities supported by People's Republic of China (PRC) Ministry of Education, Hunan Provincial People's Government and National Defense Science and Technology Bureau. It is located in Xiangtan City, Hunan Province, the hometown of Comrade Mao Zedong, a famous historical and cultural city and the central city of Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan. The school is the first batch of master's degree awarding units in China, the first batch of colleges and universities that have signed contracts with the army to train national defense students, colleges and universities where foreign students in China have won scholarships from the China government, and colleges and universities with typical experience in the employment of graduates nationwide.