Nankai University - History

History

The university was founded as a private institution in 1919. Nankai's scale was relatively small at its inception partly because it received no funding from the government but instead was funded by foreign charitable funds and local entrepreneurs, with only 3 departments (liberal arts, science, and business) and 96 students. It was noted particularly for its courses which were taught in full English using foreign curricula and textbooks. By 1937, Nankai had expanded into a university of 3 colleges, 13 departments, and 2 research institutes, boasting 429 students and 110 faculty and staff members. It was compared to be "The North Star of Higher Learning". In accordance with its motto of "Dedication to the public interests, acquisition of all-round capability and aspiration for progress with each passing day", the University has produced batches of prominent talents such as late Premier Zhou Enlai, Dr. Shiing-Shen Chern, Dr. Ta-You Wu and Mr. Cao Yu. The well-known Nankai Institute of Economics was established in 1927 and soon became one of the most prominent in China being the first non-foreign entity to calculate a Chinese Consumer Price Index.

In July 1937, during the Sino-Japanese War, Nankai campus was severely damaged by Japanese bombings. About two-thirds of the school buildings were destroyed including its library which was deliberately burnt down by the Japanese Imperial Army. A number of the school's artifacts, including the university bell were looted and remain in Japanese museums till this day. In August 1937, Nankai University, Peking University and Tsinghua University united together and formed the National Changsha Provisional University, which later moved to Kunming and was renamed the National Southwestern Associated University. In 1946, after the war, Nankai returned to Tianjin and was reformed into a national university by the government. At that time, Nankai had four schools (Liberal Arts, Science, Political Science and Economics, and Engineering) and 16 departments.

After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, Nankai was readjusted and became a comprehensive university with emphasis on the arts and sciences, with 14 departments and 3 professional specialties in total. Since then, leading scholars as Zheng Tianting, Lei Haizong, Wu Tingqiu and many overseas scholars from US, Europe and Japan have come to join the university.

From 1966 to 1976 the School's normal life was out of order due to the Cultural Revolution. Even worse, in 1976 a catastrophic earthquake broke out in Tangshan bordering Tianjin, causing damage of varying degrees to the School's buildings.

However, Nankai University soon stepped into a new era after China's Open and Reform policy. After 1980, in order to meet the demands for socialist modernization, the School added a batch of new specialties and institutes. In Arts, applied specialties on financing were set up and the School of Economics was reopened in 1983, while in Sciences, interdisciplinary, marginal and high and new technological specialties were added. By the late 1980s, Nankai University had grown to be a comprehensive university embracing Humanities, Natural Sciences, Applied Sciences, Life Sciences, Managements and Art. In 1994 Tianjin Foreign Trade College was incorporated into Nankai University. In the past few years, to cater to demands of fast social economic development, the University has created various brand-new modes of running school which have extended its education far into all walks of life. In 1999 under the combined efforts of Nankai University and TEDA, TEDA College was set up, which was entitled the SAR of higher education. In 2000 the State Ministry of Education signed an agreement with Tianjin Municipal Government on jointly establishing and developing Nankai University. Experimental cooperation between Nankai University and Tianjin University was initiated on the principle of independent school-running and close cooperation. In 2002 under the cooperative efforts of Nankai University, Shen Zhen Municipal Government and UC Berkeley, Financial Engineering College was established in Shenzhen.