Fan Xuji

Who is Fan Xuji?

Fan Xuji was a former president of Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Fan was born on January 5, 1914 in Beijing. His father was among the first students sent to Russia by the Qing Dynasty and studied railway engineering. Fan completed his elementary education in Beijing. In 1925, his family moved to Harbin. In 1929, Fan enrolled in Harbin Institute of Technology, majoring in mechanical engineering. He obtained a bachelor's degree and also mastered Russian language. In the following years, he went to study at the California Institute of Technology in the United States and obtained two master's degrees in mechanical engineering and aeronautic engineering.

Fan became the vice president of SJTU in 1979, and the president in 1980. He retired in 1984.