NYU Shanghai Announces its First Full-Ride Scholarship Winner

Xu Yufeng ’26 has just been announced NYU Shanghai’s first Lizhong Achievement Award winner. Xu, who graduated from Suzhou High School in Jiangsu Province, will be the inaugural recipient of the 1-million-RMB full-ride scholarship named for NYU Shanghai’s founding chancellor Yu Lizhong. 

Among over 2,500 applicants from all over China, Xu is one of the 249 who received final admissions offers to join the Class of 2026 along with a roughly equal number of international students selected worldwide to form NYU Shanghai’s diverse student body.

Xu and his family are delighted to accept the award; his parents believe that the university’s diverse academic environment and student-faculty ratio will lend to a rich and colorful college life. “We feel NYU Shanghai can offer our child something different from traditional universities, such as developing empathy and understanding in a cross-cultural environment, a deeper understanding of China from multiple perspectives, and cultivating a broader international perspective to understand the world,” said Yan Jie, Xu’s mother. 

Xu was drawn to NYU Shanghai for its intellectual resources and diverse campus life provided by the NYU Global Network. “I think higher education is more than professional knowledge acquisition,” he said. “Students also need to learn how to understand different ideas and perspectives and develop the ability to observe and contemplate social phenomenons.”

_{Xu Yufeng, in a violet Class of 2026 T-shirt, holds up his Letter of Admission and a plush tiger keychain included in his admissions package}

In high school, Xu received many accolades for outstanding performance in various subjects as well as winning second place in the Chinese Mathematical Olympiad - twice. He was also highly involved in his high school musical theater club. It was no surprise that he later scored high on China’s national entrance examination, ranking among the top students in Jiangsu Province.

“From his academic achievements to his dedication to our common values, we could not have selected a more deserving student,” said Director of Admissions Annie Lu.

As for his academic plans, Xu says he is most interested in computer science, hopes to pursue a double major or minor, and looks forward to discovering interests in other fields through core curriculum courses during his first year. After chatting with other new classmates online, Xu was impressed by “the wealth of talents” at NYU Shanghai and hopes to make himself known to others as more than just a scholarship winner.

“One of the most important aspects of a university is its own unique traditions,” said NYU Shanghai Chancellor Tong Shijun. “As China’s first Sino-US research university and the third degree-granting campus of the NYU Global Network, NYU Shanghai has gained benefits from the traditions of higher education from both sides deeply rooted for over three centuries, and the outstanding contributions made by its faculty and students over a decade since its founding in 2012.”

Besides the Lizhong Award, two other existing merit-based scholarship awards founded by NYU Shanghai - the Quintessence Award and Elite Award - respectively provide awardees with RMB 360,000 and RMB 180,000 over four years and has been awarded to Chinese students from provinces spanning Sichuan, Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Guangdong, Beijing, and Shanghai.

“The establishment of the Lizhong Achievement Award is a major step to carry on the spirit of NYU Shanghai,” said Tong. “I believe that this scholarship will encourage not only the winners, but all students to contribute to a better future for NYU Shanghai.”

NYU Shanghai offers both Chinese and international students a broad range of financial support programs, including merit-based scholarships and need-based aid. Click here to learn more about financial aid or send your questions to the Office of Financial Support at shanghai.financial.support@nyu.edu.