Founded in 1994, Peking University is a multidisciplinary comprehensive school based on economics, focusing on the three major teaching systems of politics, business and learning, and is the first university in China to offer an all-English MBA program

The National School of Development (NSD) of Peking University is a multidisciplinary comprehensive school based on economics at Peking University, formerly known as the China Center for Economic Research (CCER) of Peking University founded in 1994 by six returnees with PhDs in economics including Lin Yifu, and was renamed the National School of Development (CDER) in 2008 with the addition of more scholars and the expansion of scientific research and teaching.

In addition to the founders of Lin Yifu, Haiwen, Yi Gang and Zhang Weiying, the Institute also includes Zhou Qiren, Song Guoqing, Zeng Yi, Min Weifang, Yao Yang, Huang Yiping, Liu Guoen, Li Ling, Zhao Yaohui, Fu Jun and Chen Chunhua and other well-known scholars in economics, management, political science, educational economics and demography. Adhering to the inclusive, harmonious and different academic style of Peking University, the school pays great attention to China's practical problems, is committed to the combination of academics and reality, and spares no effort to promote China's progress. After more than 20 years of development, the Institute has formed a comprehensive college integrating teaching, scientific research and think tank, and has become an important part of Peking University's construction of a world-class university.

In terms of teaching, the Institute has formed three major teaching systems: politics, business and learning. In terms of academic education, the master's and doctoral programs in economics of the National Development Institute are in the leading position in the country, and graduates have become a new force in the field of economics in China. After more than 20 years of training, the double degree program in economics has become an important business card of Peking University. Starting from the fall of 2017, the Institute will recruit undergraduate students in the direction of national development, and cultivate comprehensive talents based on economics and familiar with the basic principles of philosophy and political science. In terms of business education, the BiMBA program of the National Development Institute began in 1998, and the MBA and EMBA education has been outstanding for its academic orientation and rigorous teaching, and the student evaluation has long been in the leading position in China. The EDP project is mainly based on high-end customized enterprise internal training, which is widely praised by the society. In terms of government administration and economic management education, the Institute undertook foreign aid projects of the Ministry of Commerce and established the School of South-South Cooperation and Development of Peking University, which specializes in training middle and senior officials from developing countries.

In terms of scientific research, the Institute is among the leading in terms of academic publications per capita at home and abroad, and its academic papers have been published in the American Economic Review, the Journal of Political Economy, the Economic Journal, the Chinese Social Sciences, the Economic Research Journal, and the Quarterly Journal of Economics and other well-known academic journals at home and abroad, and has produced some influential research results. The China Center for Economic Research provides an important academic exchange platform for the Chinese economics community.

In terms of think tank construction, adhering to the concept of "small institutions, large networks", the National Development Institute has gathered research resources from Peking University and even the world, and has produced a number of influential policy recommendations on many major issues such as the relationship between the government and the market, the construction of new rural areas, the reform of state-owned enterprises, the reform of telecommunications, the governance of the stock market, the population policy and the adjustment of economic structure, which have been adopted by the government. After years of hard work, the Institute has become a well-deserved leader among Chinese university think tanks, and was selected as one of the first batch of high-end think tanks in China in 2016. The National Development Institute has three think tank brand activities, "China Economic Observation Report", "Gezheng" and "National Development Forum", and has taken the lead in organizing the "China-US Economic Dialogue" and "China-US Health Dialogue", making outstanding contributions to China-US people-to-people diplomacy.