The School of Mathematics and Physics at Lanzhou Jiaotong University has its origins in the Department of Basic Education, established in 1958 following the relocation and consolidation of the Beijing Railway Institute (now Beijing Jiaotong University) and the Tangshan Railway Institute (now Southwest Jiaotong University) to Lanzhou. As one of the six founding departments of the university, it has played a pivotal role in the institution's development. In 2000, it was renamed the Department of Basic Sciences, and in 2003, it became the School of Mathematics, Physics, and Software Engineering. The School adopted its current name, the School of Mathematics and Physics, in 2012.

The School currently employs 114 faculty and staff members, including 108 full-time teachers. Among these are 7 doctoral supervisors, 24 professors, and 34 associate professors, with 77 faculty members holding doctoral degrees. The School has an enrollment of 818 students, comprising 512 undergraduates, 343 graduate students, and 72 preparatory students from ethnic minority groups.

The School offers three undergraduate majors: Information and Computational Science, Statistics, and Applied Physics. It also hosts 2 first-level master's degree programs in Mathematics and Physics, as well as a professional master’s degree authorization points in Applied Statistics. Both Mathematics and Physics are recognized as key disciplines in Gansu Province. The School is home to the Gansu Provincial Research Center for Fundamental Studies in Complex Systems Analysis and Control, as well as three university-level scientific research platforms: the Institute of Functional Materials and High-pressure Properties, the Institute of Applied Mathematics, and the Institute of Engineering Mathematics. Over the past five years, the School has undertaken nearly 20 projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) and 29 provincial and ministerial-level projects. These efforts have resulted in the publication of more than 200 SCI- and EI-indexed papers. Additionally, the School has received over 10 prestigious awards, including the Gansu Provincial Natural Science Award and the Science and Technology Progress Award, while successfully completing three Ministry of Education teaching research and industry-university collaboration projects.

In addition to its commitment to talent cultivation, the School actively engages in cutting-edge research in fundamental sciences. Significant achievements have been made in areas such as the physical properties of functional materials under high pressure, algebraic theory, inverse problems and scientific computing, nonlinear time-delay dynamical systems, graph theory and its applications, and the stability analysis, control, and applications of complex dynamical systems. In recent years, the School has strategically aligned its research priorities with the demands of the rail transit industry and regional economic and social development. Leveraging the university's strengths and distinctive features in rail transit, the School has actively advanced the development of new engineering disciplines and the transformation of academic programs. Noteworthy accomplishments include pioneering research on innovative low-frequency vibration and noise reduction technologies using acoustic metamaterials, as well as green and low-carbon vibration energy harvesting and reuse technologies, addressing global challenges in low-frequency noise mitigation in rail transit.

The School places a strong emphasis on academic exchange and international collaboration, continuously broadening the global perspectives of its faculty and enhancing its capacity for innovation. In recent years, 15 faculty members have visited prestigious universities and research laboratories in countries such as the United States, Canada, and Australia for academic exchanges and collaborative research. The research team focusing on high-pressure material properties has co-authored over 10 high-impact research papers with internationally renowned material physicists, including Rabah Khenata and Saad Bin-Omran.

Guided by its motto, "Master Mathematics, Explore Physics, Cultivate Virtue, and Pursue Innovation," the School is dedicated to fostering high-quality talent, meeting the developmental needs of western China, and supporting the university’s new engineering initiatives. By integrating mathematics and physics as foundational disciplines, the School strives to drive innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration, fulfilling its mission of "all-round education" and nurturing outstanding individuals with both integrity and exceptional ability.