Taiwan Hualien Junior Normal College was founded on October 27, 1947, with Professor Fan-Jian Lin as the founding President. The College was located on Mount Hua Gang in Hualien City offering two-year and four-year normal classes.

In 1949, the Affiliated Primary School of Taiwan National Hualien Junior Normal College was established to provide a training ground for the College's students.

The earthquake in October 1951 badly damaged most of the school buildings and the restoration took almost two years to complete.

In 1958, a one year course was offered to the senior high school graduates. The typhoon in July 1958 almost wiped out all the school buildings and relocation had to be considered.

The campus site in Meilun was approved in June 1959.

In September 1960, the then Taiwan National Hualien Junior Normal College was relocated to the Meilun campus.

In July 1964, the College was renamed as Taiwan Provincial Hualien Teachers' College with Professor Sing-Ti Dai as the President.

Night courses were offered in 1965 to teachers for furthering their development.

In 1987, the College was renamed as National Hualien Teachers' College with the establishment of the Department of Primary Education, the Department of Language Education, the Department of Mathematics and Sciences Education, the Department of Social Education and the Division of Early Childhood Education. Professor Jia-Cong Bao was appointed as the President.

In September 1993, Professor Po-Chang Chen was selected as the President, the first selected in teachers' colleges to realize democracy on campus.

In 2005, the College was renamed as the National Hualien University of Education. Earning the reputation as one of the most prestigious teacher training and academic institutions in Taiwan, the then National Hualien University of Education conducted far-reaching research across a range of disciplines.

Prior to the integration, it had four colleges, namely, the College of Education, the College of Science, the College of Humanities and Social Science, and the College of Arts. Since founding, there were 12 presidents.