Liu was born in Kaifeng, Henan province, China. In 1985, Liu received his B.A. in mathematics from the Department of Mathematics of Peking University in Beijing. In 1988, Liu obtained his M.A. from the Institute of Mathematics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in Beijing.[citation needed] Liu then went to study in the United States, obtaining a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1993 under Shing-Tung Yau.[1]