The history of the College of Materials Science and Engineering (CMSE) dates back to 1952. It was one of the two departments available when Nanjing Forestry University was established. The name of the college has been changed several times during the organizational adjustments of the university. In 2013 it was restructured into CMSE as both its teaching and research work had been broadened from the traditional science of wood to that of bio-based materials.

    There are 126 faculty members currently serving at the college, including 37 professors and 38 associate professors. The faculty is a team of diversity in terms of gender, age and academic backgrounds, yet it is also a body of consistency with respect to professional competency and teaching skill. Over the years, their efforts contribute much to the reputation the college has earned in both academia and industry. In the past 4 years, around 60 projects have been applied successfully by the faculty, which have brought fruitful outcomes: 641 scientific papers were published; more than 205 patents were authorized and 21 awards were won. Prof. Li Yanjun won the National Sci. & Tech. Development Award (2nd place) in 2015. Prof. Zhou Xiaoyan and Prof. Mei Changtong won the Sci. & Tech. Development Award (2nd place) of the Ministry of Education in 2015 and 2018, respectively.

    The college offers 5 undergraduate programs: Wood Science and Engineering (WS&E), Materials Science and Engineering, Packaging Engineering, Thermal Energy and Power Engineering, and New Energy Science and Engineering The WS&E program has 2 options: Wood Processing Engineering and Wooden Architecture. It is the flagship program of the college with long-term high reputation. In 2017, it was professionally accredited by the International Society of Wood Science and Engineering, the first in China. The accreditation laid a solid foundation for the internationalization of the program. In 2019, the English-medium WS&E program is officially launched and 11 international students have been enrolled.

    The college also offers 4 M.Sc. and 2 Ph.D. programs: Wood Science and Technology (M.Sc. and Ph.D.), Wood & Bamboo Processing Equipment Engineering (M.Sc. and Ph.D.), Materials Science and Engineering (M.Sc.), and Power Engineering and Engineering Thermal Physics (M. Sc.).

    The scientific research of CMSE has an application-oriented tradition and is now focusing more on fundamental theories and novel technologies. Research achievements on poplar, bamboo and straw processing have earned the college characteristic academic reputation at home and abroad. Since 1978, 70 scientific and technological achievements and 20 teaching achievements have won national, provincial or ministerial awards. Now, CMSE is the leading college at the university in charge of constructing Forest Products Engineering, a discipline listed in the First Class Disciplines Construction Project initiated by the Ministry of Education.

   The college has built up wide domestic and international cooperation, including joint research, co-operative education, international academic conferences and academic visits. It has established long-term cooperation with universities or institutes in the United States, Canada, France, Germany and Japan.

    The college has also established close cooperative relationship with hundreds of leading wood processing enterprises with respect to student training, employee recruitment and technology development. The college has set up 3 provincial academician research stations, 3 enterprise postdoctoral stations, 8 provincial graduate student workstations, 35 college-enterprise cooperation bases and 2 overseas mill-tour bases.