Wang Zhan was born in 1946 in Nantong,  Jiangsu Province. He joined the faculty of the former NantongNormalCollege in 1978.

Mr. Wang entered NanjingNormalCollege majoring Chinese Language Literary in 1962 and graduated in 1966. He was the vice president, deputy secretary of the Party Committee, and later president of NantongNormalCollege. He was the deputy mayor of Nantong City, deputy secretary general of Jiangsu Provincial Government, deputy secretary of the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee College and Universities Working Commission, director of the Jiangsu Provincial Education Commission, deputy secretary of Jiangsu Party Committee Education Working Commission, director of the Propaganda Department of the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee, deputy director of the Education Ministry, deputy director of the State Language Working Committee, general education supervisor of Education Ministry, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial People's Congress, and chairman of the Jiangsu Provincial Federation of Arts and Culture, etc.