SDUST is noted for its strengths in basic and applied research and technological development owing to its multidisciplinary features. It boasts solid academic foundation and advantages in Mining Engineering, Surveying and Mapping Science and Technology, Geological Resources and Engineering, Control Theory and Control Engineering, Computer Software and Theory, Geotechnical Engineering, Mechatronic Engineering, and Mechanical Design and Theory. Among a faculty and staff of over 2,800 are 268 professors, including three academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, one academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, four candidate of the “State 2008 Outstanding Scientists Recruiting Project”. Over 60 long-term foreign experts and teachers work on campus. The University boasts one state key discipline,23 provincial/ministerial key disciplines, one state key lab, 32 provincial/ministerial key labs (social sciences and humanities research base), one national-local jointly-run engineering research center, 12 provincial/ministerial engineering research centers, two innovation teams of the Ministry of Education, and one innovation team of Shandong higher learning institutions. Since 2000, SDUST has attained 15 national sci-tech awards and 461 provincial/ministerial awards.
SDUST actively participates in international exchange and cooperation with a view to internationalize its education. It has established cooperative relationship with 120 higher learning institutions and research institutes in 23 countries and regions including the US, UK, Japan, Germany, Russia, France, Australia, etc. Six Sino-foreign joint laboratories have been set up and over 50 cooperative projects initiated. Joint-education and student exchange programs are set up with countries like the US, France, Germany, Australia, and others. More than 500 international students are from over 40 countries like the US, France, Germany, Russia, Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Pakistan, etc. now study at SDUST. More than 20 faculty members are playing leading roles in various international academic institutions.