清华大学校歌在清华建立初期制定。第一首校歌词曲皆由1913年始在清华任教的美籍音乐教师凯瑟琳∙西里小姐（Miss Katharine E. Seelye）所作，词为英文，题名“Tsing Hua College Song”。1923年前后，开始出现重视中国文化的呼声，清华大学重新公开征集中文校歌，最终采用了汪鸾翔先生用文言文写成的歌词，并由何林一夫人张丽珍女士[注 1]谱曲[1]。
1913年秋，清华学校聘请了新的美籍音乐教师 Miss Katharine Elizabeth Seelye[2][3]，她为清华学校撰写了英文校歌。歌词刊登在1914年的《清华年刊》[4]，词曲刊登在1916年的《清华年刊》[2]。“Tsing Hua College Song”的歌曲词谱，内容符合清华干练、团结的作风，完全的美式风格[5]。
类似地，同时期还产生了拉拉队歌《清华优胜歌》（Tsing Hua Song 或 Cheer for Old Tsing Hua）[6]。刊载于1914年8月《清华年刊》上[7]，没有明确表明作者，其采用“Amherst Fight Song”乐谱，歌词亦与之相近[8][9]，深受学生欢迎，常在校队比赛时齐唱[10]。
O come and join our hearty song,
As proudly here we stand;
For Tsing Hua College let us sing—
The best in all the land.
We'll spread her fame and win a name,
And put out foes to shame—
If you don't agree, come on and see,
And you will say the same,
the same, the same,
And you will say the same.
II
In contests all, of every sort,
We win whate'er we do;
Our athletes gain unbounded praise,
And number not a few.
And when someday we go away,
We'll always truly say:
"Our Tsing Hua pride does still abide,
And evermore shall stay,
shall stay, shall stay,
And evermore shall stay."
Chorus
O Tsing Hua, fair Tsing Hua, our College bright,
May we be loyal to the purple and the white!
O Tsing Hua, fair Tsing Hua, our College true—
We're loyal, we're faithful, we'll stand for you!
Cheer for old Tsing Hua,
Tsing Hua must win!
Fight to the finish,
Never give in!
All do your best, boys;
we'll do the rest, boys!
Fight for the VICTORY!
Rah, Rah, Rah!
