# Shanghai Open University

> university in China

**Wikidata**: [Q7488484](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7488484)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghai_Open_University)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/shanghai-open-university

## Summary
Shanghai Open University is a university-level higher education institution located in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. It was founded in 1960 and maintains an official website at https://global.sou.edu.cn/ and international affiliations such as membership in the International Council for Open and Distance Education.

## Key Facts
- Instance: university (higher education institution).
- Location: Shanghai, People's Republic of China; postal code 200433.
- Inception (founding year): 1960.
- Official website: https://global.sou.edu.cn/.
- International membership: member of the International Council for Open and Distance Education (member record referenced 2024-04-07).
- Identifiers: ISNI 0000000417991859; ROR ID 027r7gj11; Ringgold ID 74756; GRID ID grid.445095.9; Freebase ID /m/026vb22; Chinese school ID 4231051252.
- Social media: Facebook handle "shanghaiopenuniversity" (reference date 2019-05-22).
- Wikimedia presence: Wikipedia title "Shanghai Open University"; Wikimedia Commons category "Shanghai Open University"; present in languages: commons, en, wuu, zh.
- Distinct entity: explicitly marked different from Shanghai Ocean University.

## FAQs
### Q: Where is Shanghai Open University located?
A: Shanghai Open University is located in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Its postal code is 200433.

### Q: When was Shanghai Open University founded?
A: The university's recorded inception (founding year) is 1960.

### Q: What is the official website of Shanghai Open University?
A: The official website is https://global.sou.edu.cn/.

### Q: Is Shanghai Open University a member of any international organizations?
A: Yes. It is listed as a member of the International Council for Open and Distance Education (record referenced 2024-04-07).

### Q: Is Shanghai Open University the same as Shanghai Ocean University?
A: No. It is explicitly recorded as a different entity from Shanghai Ocean University.

## Why It Matters
Shanghai Open University is a longstanding higher education institution based in one of China’s largest cities, with a recorded founding year of 1960. Its formal identifiers (ISNI, ROR, Ringgold, GRID, Freebase) make it discoverable and citable in library, research, and institutional datasets, supporting interoperability for researchers and partners. The university’s membership in the International Council for Open and Distance Education indicates engagement with an international community focused on open and distance learning practices. Its presence on Wikimedia projects and an official website and social media handle contribute to public visibility and accessibility of institutional information. Together, these facts position Shanghai Open University as an established institutional actor in Shanghai’s higher education landscape with links to both national and international information networks.

## Notable For
- Founded in 1960, giving it a multi-decade institutional history.
- Member of the International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE).
- Multiple formal identifiers for discovery and metadata use (ISNI, ROR, Ringgold, GRID, Freebase).
- Clear distinction from similarly named institutions (recorded as different from Shanghai Ocean University).
- Public digital presence: official website and a Facebook handle; entries across Wikimedia projects.

## Body

### Overview
- Name: Shanghai Open University.
- Instance type: university.
- Short description (Wikidata): university in China.

### History
- Inception year: 1960.

### Location & Contact
- Country: People's Republic of China.
- City: Shanghai.
- Postal code: 200433.
- GRID identifier: grid.445095.9.
- Official website: https://global.sou.edu.cn/.

### Identifiers and Authority Data
- ISNI: 0000000417991859.
- ROR ID: 027r7gj11.
- Ringgold ID: 74756.
- GRID ID: grid.445095.9.
- Freebase ID: /m/026vb22.
- Chinese school ID: 4231051252.

### Memberships and Affiliations
- Member of the International Council for Open and Distance Education (member record referenced 2024-04-07).

### Online Presence & Media
- Website: https://global.sou.edu.cn/.
- Facebook handle: shanghaiopenuniversity (reference date 2019-05-22).
- Representative image (Commons): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Side_gate,_Shanghai_Open_University_Guoshun_Road_Campus.jpg
- Wikimedia Commons category: Shanghai Open University.

### Wikidata / Wikipedia Presence
- Wikipedia title: Shanghai Open University.
- Wikidata sitelink count: 4.
- Wikipedia/Wikimedia languages listed: commons, en, wuu, zh.

### Distinctions and Disambiguation
- Different from: Shanghai Ocean University (explicitly recorded as a different entity).

## References

1. Open ISNI for Organizations
2. [Source](https://web.archive.org/web/20240407191925/https://www.icde.org/members-community/)
3. [Source](http://global.sou.edu.cn)
4. GRID Release 2016-05-31
5. Aligned ISNI and Ringgold identifiers for institutions