Founded in 1895 as Peiyang University (北洋大學) by statesman Sheng Xuanhuai under a Qing imperial charter, Tianjin University is the oldest institution of higher education in modern Chinese history. Renamed Tianjin University in 1951 following the nationwide restructuring of colleges under the People’s Republic, it was designated one of China’s first sixteen national key universities in 1959 and is now a Ministry of Education-administered institution under the country’s Double First-Class construction program for world-class universities. Today it collaborates with more than 260 institutions across 50 countries and encompasses schools spanning engineering, science, law, humanities, and medicine, with particular strength in chemical engineering, materials science, and precision instrumentation.