XMU was founded by incorporating the Traditional Chinese Medicine College of Xinjiang Medical University with the Xinjiang Medical College. Before incorporation, Xinjiang Medical College was amongst 156 key projects aided by the former Soviet Union during the First Five-Year Plan and began recruiting new students in 1956.[1] During its 60 years of existence, XMU has received attention from national and international leaders, including Chinese Communist Party officials and other provincial and urban figures across China.