Xiamen University has witnessed its long history in establishing political science, public administration and sociology. The Department of Political Science and the Department of Sociology were established in 1924-1926, and both closed down in 1952; then in September 1986, the Department of Political Science was reestablished. The School of Public Affairs (SPA), founded in November 2003, built its facilities on the combination of the Department of Political Science and Public Administration from the Law School, the Department of Sociology from the School of Humanities, and the Institute of Population Studies from the School of Economics,and was inaugurated on April 6,2004, the 83th anniversary of Xiamen University.
Currently, SPA consists of four teaching units, which are the Department of Public Administration, the Department of Political Science, the Department of Sociology and Social Work, and the MPA (Master of Public Administration) Education Center. The School also boasts for its excellent research and training institutes, including the Institute of Population and Ecological Studies, the Institute of Psychological Studies, the Center for Public Service Quality, the Center for Social Management Innovation, the Institute of Regional Development Policy, the Center for Public Policy and Government Innovation, the Center for Women’s/Gender Studies and Training, the Institute of Political Science and Administrative Science, the Institute of Social Development, the Center for Government Performance Management, the Center for New Zealand Studies, Experimental Center, Social Service Center, among others.