NPU is classed as a key university in China’s 985 and 211 Projects, and is affiliated to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. It is also a member of the “Excellent Union 9 (E9)” in China.

Originally founded as the State Northwest Polytechnic Institute in 1938, NPU has developed into an open and research-oriented University by bringing its founding spirit of inquiry and innovation into a wide-ranging curriculum that now includes the Humanities, Law, Management and Foreign Languages. And by incorporating three of China’s leading engineering schools， NPU has gained international recognition for its work in the fields of aeronautics, astronautics, and marine technology.

Over more than 70 years NPU has built an outstanding academic reputation encapsulated in its motto of "Loyalty, Integrity, Courage and Perseverance".

NPU is located in Xi’an, the cradle of Chinese civilization, and starting point of the ancient Silk Road. Xi'an is a living tapestry of Chinese history renowned above all for the Terracotta Warriors dating from the Qin Dynasty (221 – 206 BC). During the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907) the city, then known as Chang'an, flourished thru trade with the West along the Silk Road, thus earning its place alongside Athens, Cairo and Rome as one of the four major centers of world civilization.

NPU comprises two campuses covering a total area of 841 acres – 198 for Youyi Campus and 643 for Chang’an Campus.