President of HKUST visits San Francisco

A delegation led by President of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) Professor Paul Chu visited San Francisco in May as part of their trip to the United States. The delegation members included Professor Roland Chin, Chair Professor of Computer Science and Acting Vice President for Academic Affairs, Professor Angelina Yee, Associate Vice-President (Office of the President) and Executive Director of Institute for Advanced Study at HKUST, and C.K. Yeung, Director of University Development and Public Affairs.

The delegation visited many renowned universities in the United States, including UC Berkeley, Stanford, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara and UC San Diego, and shared with them the achievements and latest developments of HKUST. The University was established in 1991. In just 15 years, HKUST has already gained a lot of international recognition through its four schools – the School of Science, School of Business and Management, School of Engineering, and the School of Humanities and Social Science. Its Executive MBA program is ranked No. 3 in the world in the Financial Times 2006 Global EMBA Rankings.

Speaking at a luncheon in Silicon Valley organized by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Professor Chu said that to cope with the changes and requirements of a knowledge-based economy, university education in Hong Kong would extend from three years to four years, which would generate huge demand for university staff. HKUST’s plan was to recruit about 100 professors and teaching staff, according to Professor Chu.

In addition, the new HKUST Fok Ying Tung Graduate School and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Production, Education and Research Institute also require many distinguished faculty members.

“Eighty percent of our faculty members belong to the world’s exclusive establishments,” said Professor Chu. He hopes to recruit more talents to Hong Kong.

Professor Chu also said that with the rapid growth of China, it would require many more engineers, scientists, lawyers, and technological and financial experts. Hong Kong, because of its emphasis on free flow of information and people, as well as its unique connection with China, is well-positioned to be the education hub of the region.

Hong Kong welcomed talents from different nationalities. Many who went to Hong Kong liked the city, he added.

With the right people, HKUST could contribute significantly to the development of science, technology, education and commerce for Hong Kong, China and beyond. He hoped HKUST would become the “MIT” in Asia.