In the 1950s, the national "adjustment of colleges and departments" (院系调整) was organized, after which SCU specialized in arts and science.

In 1994, the SCU, CUST and WCUMS merged to form the Sichuan Union University (四川联合大学).

The 109 bachelor's degree programs SCU grants cover the main fields in liberal arts, sciences, engineering, medicine and agriculture.

Sichuan University has been listed on the Entity List of the United States Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security since 2012 due to the Sichuan University Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology's involvement in nuclear weapons development.

[6][7] Sichuan University has a current total staff of 11,357, among which 1,323 are professors, 2,345 associate professors, 13 academicians of Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, 434 PhD Supervisors, and 17 members of the Academic Degrees Committee and the Discipline Appraisal Group under the State Council.

SCU has 23 professorships from the Yangtze River Scholar Award Plan (9 lecture professor).

The university has invested significantly in research, teaching and medical equipment, with a total value of about 530 million RMB.

SCU has undertaken and completed a number of national, ministerial and regional research projects, and has many achievements that are rated first class in China.

In 2002, the university applied for 121 patents, 102 out of which were invention-oriented, making it number eighth among peer schools.

[24] The libraries also serve as the Collection Center for English Publications under the National Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Ministry of Education Information Center for Liberal Arts Literature and CALIS Southwest Sub-center.

[26][27] The university stadium is fully equipped and served as the main field for the Sixth National Collegiate Sports Meet.

Other notable people who studied at SCU include Marshal Zhu De, one of the founding fathers of the People's Republic of China and the People's Liberation Army; Guo Moruo, a literary expert and previous president of Chinese Academy of Science; Jinde Cao, dean of the School of Mathematics at Southeast University;[32] and Ba Jin, a well-known Chinese author.