BEIJING - The University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC), the country's first Sino-foreign university, marked its 10th anniversary on Thursday in Beijing.

UNNC was China's first joint Sino-foreign University, established in 2004 by a partnership between Zhejiang Wanli Education Group and the University of Nottingham after China's State Council passed a regulation in 2003 on Sino-foreign cooperation in running schools.

The UNNC student community has grown from just 254 undergraduates in 2004 to over 6,000 in 2014, including undergraduates, postgraduates and PhD students, said Yang Fujia, UNNC President and former Chancellor of the University of Nottingham between 2001 and 2012.

Yang was the first Chinese person to hold the post of chancellor in a leading UK university.

The UNNC is determined to double the percentage of postgraduates and overseas students from the current 10 percent each to 20 percent for each group in 2020, said Yang, also an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

David Greenaway, President and Vice Chancellor of the University of Nottingham, said UNNC is committed to serving the Ningbo community and contributing to China's economic and social development.

The Ningbo Nottingham International Academy for Marine Economy and Technology, officially launched on Monday, will build on Ningbo's strong reputation for marine-related activities and support the city's marine economy, he said.

UNNC began construction of its campus on April 15, 2004 in Ningbo City in east China's Zhejiang Province. It began recruiting students in September 2004. It currently has 5,616 undergraduates, 549 postgraduates and 188 PhD students.