In January 2000, the Center for Higher Education Development of Xiamen University was founded on the basis of the Research Institute of Higher Education Science and was officially approved as the key research institute for humanities and social science by the Ministry of Education on September 5, 2000.

The Center gathers and cultivates a lot of excellent academic talents, organizes the new high-level scientific research on academic frontiers and the socioeconomic development of major theoretical and practical issues around the strategies of national development. The Center plays an important role in innovative production, academic exchanges and the development of universities’ philosophy and social sciences.

The Center pays more attention to quality enhance and content-oriented development, while consolidates previous achievements. The key research  institute has become the cornerstone and the pillar of the "211 Project" and the "985 Project" as well as a major component of the China’s philosophy and social sciences innovation system.

The Center fully plays the role of think tanks and talent bank and promotes all-round development of the universities humanities and social science research system and scientific research work.

In 2004, the Center passed the assessment by the Ministry of Education. Now it is conducting the second-phase development.