Changchun University is located in Changchun, Jilin Province, often referred to as the "Spring City of Northern China." It is a comprehensive provincial university with a rich heritage and distinctive characteristics. The university spans three campuses, covering a total area of 1.02 million square meters.

The university's predecessor was the Changchun Industrial Accounting and Statistics Specialized School, established in 1949 by the Industrial Department of the former Northeast People's Government. It trained the first batch of industrial accounting and statistics professionals for The People's Republic of China. Amidst national development and societal changes, the university underwent several name changes, becoming Jilin Electromechanical College in 1983. In 1987, with approval from the former State Education Commission of the PRC, Jilin University of Science and Technology, Jilin Electromechanical College, Changchun Foreign Languages College, and Changchun Polytechnic merged to form Changchun University. In 2000, the former Jilin Forestry College was incorporated.

The university comprises 20 schools and departments, with 9 first-level academic master’s degree programs and 15 professional master’s degree programs. It is a doctoral degree-granting institution in Jilin Province, with doctoral programs being developed in Mechanical Engineering, Food Science and Engineering, and Materials and Chemical Engineering. The academic and professional structure spans ten disciplines: Economics, Law, Education, Literature, Science, Engineering, Agriculture, Medicine, Management, and Arts. The university offers 49 undergraduate programs, including 2 national-level specialized programs and 8 provincial-level specialized programs. The university also has 5 national-level first-class program development points and 15 provincial-level first-class program development points, as well as 1 national-level talent cultivation model innovation experimental zone.

The university currently has 1,279 faculty and staff members, including 145 professors with senior titles, 332 associate professors, and more than 50 high-level talents, such as senior experts directly linked to the central government, experts with outstanding contributions to the nation, recipients of the State Council Special Allowance, New Century Talent of the Ministry of Education, and national technical experts. The university, based on the industrial structure of the Northeast region and Jilin Province, has established two national-level research platforms: the National Soybean Deep Processing Technology Research and Promotion Center and the National Soybean Engineering Technology Research Center, Jilin Branch. Additionally, the university has 24 provincial and ministerial-level research platforms, including the Key Laboratory for Smart Rehabilitation and Barrier-Free Access for Persons with Disabilities Designated by the Ministry of Education and the Jilin Province Research Center for Strategic Innovation in Aging Society Development.

The university currently has 20,022 full-time enrolled students, including 1,500 master's degree students. Adhering to the principle of "enhancing teaching, guiding teaching, nurturing talent, and promoting innovation through competitions," the university actively advances innovation and entrepreneurship education. In 2017, the university was recognized as one of the Second Batch of National Demonstration Universities for Deepening Innovation and Entrepreneurship Education Reform. It has ranked in the "Top 300 National Universities for Innovation Talent Development and Discipline Competition," as evaluated by the China Association of Higher Education, for four consecutive times. Its "Tuanfeng Innovation and Entrepreneurship Team" was honored as a "Xiaoping Science and Technology Innovation Team" by the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League. The university has received 19 national awards in the "Challenge Cup" and "Creative Youth" competitions. Since 2017, the university's FCC Racing Team has excelled for five times in the China University Student Formula Racing Competition Series, earning the title of the Most Influential Team. The university places great emphasis on cultivating a distinctive campus culture. The university's student art performances have won the national first prize for six consecutive years, and the student have been recognized as key national organizations. The school also won the first prize in the "Youth Speak: The Last Decade" National University Themed Public Speaking Competition.

The university adheres to an internationalized approach to education and was one of the first batch of higher education institutions in China qualified to admit international students. It has established friendly cooperative relations with 97 universities, educational institutions, and enterprises from 17countries and regions, including Russia, the UK, Australia, South Korea, and Japan. The university currently holds the qualifications to accept international students under the Chinese Government Scholarship, the Confucius Institute Scholarship, the Jilin Provincial Government Scholarship, and the "Silk Road" Chinese Government Scholarship program. It also undertakes more than ten overseas study and training programs, including the Russia-Ukraine-Belarus international cooperation program, the Russia-Ukraine-Belarus professional talent cultivation program, and the Sino-Russian Government Scholarship program. The university collaborates on eight Sino-foreign cooperative education programs and one non-independent Sino-foreign education institution with seven universities in Russia, South Korea, Ukraine, and Japan. The university, in partnership with the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange (CSCSE) of the Ministry of Education, has co-established a "Training Base for Study in Russia" and founded the Yesenin Cultural and Education Center, the first institution in Asia dedicated to the study of Sergei Yesenin. The Confucius Institute jointly established with Ryazan State University in Russia was awarded the global honor of "Advanced Confucius Institute." In 2021, the university was approved as an implementing institution for the "Asian Campus" project, a government-led initiative by China, Japan, and South Korea.

In 1987, the China Disabled Persons’ Federation and the People’s Government of Jilin Province jointly established at Changchun University the first higher education institution in China—and also the first in Asia—dedicated to special education. This institution accommodates students with hearing, visual, and physical disabilities, breaking new ground for higher education accessibility for individuals with disabilities in China. Currently, the university enrolls over 1,000 students with disabilities, offering 9 undergraduate programs and 4 master’s programs. It is the largest institution in China in terms of scale and diversity of programs for students with disabilities. Over the past 30 years, the institution’s achievements in special education have earned numerous national and international honors and accolades. It has been recognized by the China Disabled Persons’ Federation and the Ministry of Education as a “National Pilot Institution for Higher Inclusive Education for Persons with Disabilities.” In 2002, Deng Pufang, then Chairman of the China Disabled Persons’ Federation, remarked at the 15th-anniversary celebration, “The Special Education School of Changchun University was the earliest to be established, the largest in scale, the most comprehensive in disciplines, and the highest in academic level, occupying a leading position in China’s higher special education field.” In 2017, on the 30th anniversary of the institute's founding, Zhang Haidi, Chairperson of the China Disabled Persons' Federation, stated in a congratulatory letter: "The establishment of Changchun University’s School of Special Education marks a historic beginning for higher special education in China and serves as a milestone in the development of the nation’s undertakings for persons with disabilities."