(ECNS) -- Peking University has dismissed online rumors claiming that faculty members at its School of Mathematical Sciences refused to write recommendation letters for Wang Hong, a 2026 Fields Medal winner, when she applied for graduate study in France.
Chen Dayue, former dean of the School of Mathematical Sciences at Peking University, said Wang received recommendation letters from several faculty members, including Wang Fuzheng, Tian Qingchun and Wang Lizhong, all of whom taught at the school.
Wang was named one of the school's 49 outstanding graduates among 269 master's and doctoral candidates in 2011. She also conducted undergraduate research under the supervision of Wang Lizhong, Chen said. Wang later informed her supervisor that she had been admitted to École Polytechnique in Paris and confirmed that she intended to enroll there.
"Students applying to study abroad typically approach professors directly for recommendation letters. These faculty members all knew Wang well and had a strong understanding of her academic abilities," Chen said.
The former dean also responded to questions about Wang's eligibility for postgraduate recommendation admission, a system that allows high-performing undergraduates to enter graduate programs without taking the national entrance examination.
"Students approaching the end of their undergraduate studies generally choose between the postgraduate recommendation track and studying abroad. Those planning to study overseas usually do not participate in the recommendation process, and Wang was no exception," Chen said. "Her grades qualified her for the recommendation track."
The rumors, which circulated on Chinese social media, alleged that Wang's academic performance was mediocre, that she had barely graduated and that mathematics faculty members had refused to write recommendation letters for her.
Born in 1991 in Guilin, South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Wang grew up in a family with a strong connection to mathematics, as her father was a mathematics teacher, according to media reports.
In 2007, she skipped two grades and entered Peking University at the age of 16.
On July 23, Wang was awarded a Fields Medal at the 2026 International Congress of Mathematicians in Philadelphia, the United States.
(By ZhangDongfang)
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