The predecessors of the College of Plant Protection include the Department of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests of the College of Agronomy of Shandong University, the Teaching and Research Sections of Plant Pathology and Entomology of Shandong Provincial College of Agriculture, and part of the Agricultural College of Cheeloo University. During the national higher education institutional restructuring in 1952, these entities were merged into the Department of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests of Shandong Agricultural College. It was renamed the Department of Plant Protection in 1954, and upgraded to the College of Plant Protection in December 2000. Through the joint efforts of generations of faculty and staff, the discipline has achieved rapid development and yielded fruitful results in advancing science and education to revitalize Shandong and the nation, poverty alleviation, and rural revitalization. The college has forged its unique spirit of Remembering Origins, Loving Agriculture, Pursuing Truth, and Sincere Dedication.

The college consists of six departments: Plant Pathology, Entomology, Pesticide Science, Tobacco Science, Forest Protection, and Mycology. It offers five undergraduate majors: Plant Protection, Pharmaceutical Engineering, Tobacco Science, Forest Protection, and Applied Biological Science, with 1,399 undergraduate students currently enrolled. The college runs a Postdoctoral Research Station of Plant Protection, and holds a First-Class Discipline Doctoral Program in Plant Protection covering three research directions (Plant Pathology, Entomology, Pesticide Science), a Professional Doctoral Program in Agriculture, a First-Class Discipline Master’s Program in Plant Protection covering five research directions (Plant Pathology, Entomology, Pesticide Science, Prevention and Control of Forest and Grass Pests, Tobacco Science), as well as a Professional Master’s Program in Resource Utilization and Plant Protection. There are 469 postgraduate students in total.

Plant Protection is a National Brand Major, National First-Class Undergraduate Major, Shandong Provincial Distinctive Major, and a top-tier talent cultivation major under the Outstanding Agricultural and Forestry Talents Training Program. Pharmaceutical Engineering (Pesticide Track) and Tobacco Science are Shandong Provincial First-Class Undergraduate Majors. The college has undertaken the Shandong High-Level Applied Major Construction Project and the Industry Matching Program for Education Serving the Transformation of Old and New Growth Drivers, with a total construction fund of 50 million RMB. Plant Protection is listed as a Shandong Provincial First-Class Discipline and a High-Level Discipline (Advantage & Characteristic Category) of Shandong Province, supported by over 100 million RMB construction funds. Faculty of the college claimed the Special Prize of the 9th Shandong Provincial Teaching Achievement Award as the first completing unit.

The college has 116 faculty and staff. Professor Li Yu, Member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, serves as Honorary Dean. There are 87 full-time teachers, 98.8% of whom hold doctoral degrees and 30% have overseas study experience, including 26 professors and 44 associate professors. The faculty team comprises 1 Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1 recipient of the National Outstanding Youth Fund, 1 winner of the National Ten-Thousand Talents Program, 1 Chief Scientist of the National Bulk Vegetable Industrial Technology System, 2 New Century Excellent Talents of the Ministry of Education, 1 Shennong Young Talent, 1 recipient of the Youth Talent Support Project of the China Association for Science and Technology, 3 Distinguished Taishan Scholars, 3 Young Taishan Scholars, 2 Taishan Industrial Leading Talents, 1 Provincial Distinguished Teacher, 3 Shandong Provincial Top Professional and Technical Talents, 2 Young and Middle-Aged Experts with Outstanding Contributions to Shandong Province, 2 Chief Experts, 3 Deputy Chief Experts, 10 Post Scientists and 1 Station Director of the Innovation Teams of Shandong Modern Agricultural Industrial Technology Systems.

The college hosts 10 provincial and ministerial-level research platforms: the Key Laboratory for Integrated Pest Management of Crops in the Lower Yellow River (co-sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and Shandong Province), the National Germplasm Resource Bank of Plant Protection Microorganisms (Shandong Branch), the Pesticide Environmental Toxicology Research Center (certified by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs), Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Vegetable Pest Biology, Shandong University Key Laboratory for Integrated Management of Plant Pests, Shandong University Key Laboratory of Pesticide Toxicology and Applied Technology, Shandong University Collaborative Innovation Center for Integrated Control of Agricultural and Forest Pests in the Yellow River Basin, Shandong Tobacco Pest Research Center, and Shandong Engineering Technology Research Center for Forest Pest Prevention and Control.

The undergraduate experimental teaching center contains 15 laboratories, plus one specimen room each for insects, plant diseases and weeds, one pesticide processing laboratory, one plant protection experimental station, one insect breeding field, and one mycology training base. Covering a total area of 1,766 square meters, the center is equipped with more than 2,500 sets of instruments and equipment worth over 25.5 million RMB.

Scientific research has achieved remarkable progress. Faculty preside over more than 100 national, provincial and ministerial research projects including the National Natural Science Foundation, National Science and Technology Support Program, National Grain Enhancement Project, National Pesticide Reduction & Efficiency Enhancement Program, Special Public Welfare Projects of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, and National Key R&D Programs. The annual research funding reaches 30 million RMB. Around 150 papers are published each year, nearly 80 of which are indexed by SCI, alongside over 30 authorized patents annually. In recent years, faculty have won 1 Second Prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award, 1 First Prize and 3 Second Prizes of the Shandong Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award as the first completing units. They have also participated in projects winning 1 First Prize and 2 Second Prizes of the National Science and Technology Progress Award, as well as 7 First Prizes of provincial and ministerial science and technology progress awards.

The college actively expands international exchanges and cooperation with well-known universities and research institutes in Sweden, France, the United States, Israel, the United Kingdom, Japan and other countries, establishing long-term exchange and collaborative ties. It has hosted more than ten major academic conferences, such as the Annual Conference of the Chinese Society for Plant Pathology, Annual Conference of the Mycological Society of China, and National Forest Protection Academic Conference.

The college always prioritizes teaching work, adhering to the educational philosophy of Student-Centered, Outcome-Oriented, Integrating Farming Practice with Academic Learning. It fully fulfills the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education, centers on all-round student development, coordinates theoretical and practical teaching, prioritizes cultivation of students’ innovative capacity, and improves students’ comprehensive quality. In recent years, students have won dozens of awards in innovation and entrepreneurship competitions, including two national gold medals in the Internet+ College Students Innovation Competition.

The college strengthens faculty development, curriculum reform, textbook compilation and teaching infrastructure to continuously lift teaching quality. It has repeatedly obtained excellent ratings in university-wide teaching assessments, steadily elevating school-running standards and talent training quality, and fostering a sound college ethos and study atmosphere. Closer ties with industries have led multiple enterprises to set up enterprise scholarships and grants within the college. Student employment rate consistently ranks among the top of the university, and the college has been awarded the Advanced Collective for Student Enrollment and Employment for consecutive years. The undergraduate postgraduate admission rate has exceeded 50% for 23 consecutive years, peaking at over 70% in the best year.

To date, more than 8,500 alumni have taken up posts in education, scientific research, technology extension, enterprise management and government administration. Many have grown into Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, outstanding entrepreneurs, or provincial and departmental leading cadres. Four alumni have been honored as Distinguished Alumni of Shandong Agricultural University, and one as Young Distinguished Alumni of Shandong Agricultural University.