Nanjing University of Science and Technology or NUST (Chinese: 南京理工大学, pinyin: Nánjīng Lǐgōng Dàxué; colloquially 南理工, pinyin: Nánlǐgōng) is one of the national key universities under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China. The university was derived from the Institute of Military Engineering of the PLA, which was the highest institution of military technology in China established in 1953.