[4] It aims to be one of the best universities of its kind in the world for inheriting and promoting the excellent culture of all ethnic groups.

MUC is one of the most prestigious universities in China in ethnology, anthropology, ethnic economies, regional economics, religion studies, history, dance, and fine arts.

[citation needed] In 2001, the People's Daily described CUN as "China's top academy for ethnic studies.

[20][17][21][22][23] The Chinese Communist Party first established a Nationalities Institute in its Civil War stronghold of Yan'an, in central China, in October 1941.

The result was the Central Institute for Nationalities,[citation needed] which was established in 1951 and officially opened on 11 June 1952.

In its early years, the institute was caught up in the sensitive issue of classifying China's vast population into official ethnic groups, until the Cultural Revolution made conventional education almost impossible.

As of 2011, Minzu University accepts National Higher Education Entrance Examination (Gaokao) scores with a minimum in the mid-400s, or below the 50th percentile.

Sometimes minimum score levels were lowered to ensure that students from among the least-accepted minority groups would be permitted entry.