Central South University is located in Changsha, Hunan Province, a famous historical and cultural city in China, covering an area of 3.17 million square meters. Across the two banks of the Xiangjiang River, facing the towering Yuelu and the surging Xiangshui River, the environment is elegant and the scenery is pleasant. It is an ideal garden for learning. The school has 30 second-class colleges, and has three large-scale third-class first-class comprehensive hospitals and Xiangya stomatological hospital, Xiangya Second Hospital and Xiangya Third Hospital, which enjoy the reputation of "Southern Xiangya". Central South University was formed by the merger of the former Hunan Medical University, Changsha Railway College and Central South University of technology in April, 2000. The predecessor of the former Central South University of technology is the Central South Institute of mining and metallurgy, which was founded in 1952, and the predecessor of the former Changsha Railway University is the Central South Institute of civil engineering and architecture, which was founded in 1953. The main disciplines of the two universities are traced back to the mining and road Sciences of Hunan higher industrial school, which was founded in 1903.

The predecessor of the former Hunan Medical University, Xiangya Medical College, founded in 1914, is one of the earliest western medicine colleges and universities in China. Central South University has gone through a hundred years of school running accumulation, complied with the general trend of China's higher education system reform, carried forward the university spirit with the core of "unity of knowledge and practice, practical application", pursued the school spirit of "goodness, truth-seeking, aestheticism and inclusiveness", adhered to its own school running characteristics, served the major needs of the country and society, worked hard in unity, reform and innovation, pursued excellence, and greatly improved its comprehensive strength and overall level.