Faculty

"It is the masters who make a university, not buildings."

It is true that the development of a university depends on substantial conditions and environment, however, the key to it is the masters of the university. From the very beginning, Peiyang University followed the models of top universities in western countries, hiring native and foreign experts and masters as professors in their respective fields. Except Chinese courses and some foreign language courses which were taught by Chinese teachers, all core courses of western advanced science and technology were taught by foreign professors. Most of the Chinese faculty was overseas graduates returned in the early years, like Wang Shaolian, a Peiyang Naval Institute graduate returning from Britain. Foreign faculty mainly consisted of Americans who were graduates from top American universities, such as Stanford and MIT. They were recommended by their professors in response to the letter of invitation written by Dr. Charles Daniel Tenney, the General Supervisor (Acting President) of Peiyang University. The teachers gave instruction in English and adopted original English text books. "So in the early days of the university, Peiyang University could rival Harvard or Yale in teaching." "The first batch of Peiyang graduates was qualified to go directly to the graduate schools of famous American universities for future study." Due to its great achievements, Peiyang faculty was awarded by the Qing government several times.

With the development of the university, Peiyang started appointing outstanding native Chinese teachers as university faculty. A great number of famous Chinese experts and scholars, such as Feng Ximin, Mao Yisheng, Li Shutian, Wei Shoukun and Zhang Guofan, were invited to teach in Peiyang University. They guaranteed the quality of the academic teaching and research of the university.