Hong Kong Higher Education To Make a Difference

To Move with the Times
University Grants Committee
January 2004
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EXECTIVE SUMMARY
This document sets out that the University Grants Committee
(UGC):
(a) sees the Hong Kong higher education sector serving as ‘the
education hub of the region’, driving forward the economic and
social development of Hong Kong, in the context of our unique
relationship with Mainland China and the region;
(b) takes a strategic approach to Hong Kong’s higher education
system, by developing an interlocking system where the whole
higher education sector is viewed as one force, with each
institution fulfilling a unique role, based on its strengths;
(c) works with institutions to ensure that each provides excellent
teaching in all areas relevant to its role;
(d) aims to promote “international competitiveness” where it occurs
in institutions, understanding that all will contribute to this
endeavour and that some institutions will have more
internationally competitive centres than others; and
(e) values a role-driven yet deeply collaborative system of higher
education where each institution has its own role and purpose,
while at the same time being committed to extensive
collaboration with other institutions in order that the system can
sustain a greater variety of offerings at a high level of quality and
with improving efficiency.
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INTRODUCTION
The aim of this document is to articulate the thinking of the UGC
on the direction it proposes to take in advising the government and steering
the higher education sector in respect of role differentiation among
institutions and achieving international competitiveness. We issue this at
this time for a number of reasons:
(a) The Higher Education Review made many substantive
recommendations at a strategic level on role differentiation and
excellence. It has now become clear that the UGC needs to draw
the roadmap – the compass for which is the Higher Education
Review.
(b) As the UGC has set to tackling these areas of the Higher
Education Review, for example in our work on role
differentiation among institutions, institutional integration, and
performance and role related funding, it has become apparent
that these matters must be viewed against a clear picture of the
system as a whole.
(c) There are conflicting aspirations and views about how public
funding should be directed in any higher education system. At
bottom, there is a tension between providing greater public
funding to allow a selected number of areas or institutions to
seek to shine at an international level – and providing what is
deemed to be adequate funding to all areas of the system so that
all who enter can benefit. This tension now needs to be
investigated in real rather than hypothetical terms.
(d) The fiscal budget is under great strain. This cannot be ignored,
even for a five to ten year plan. Thus, the UGC’s thinking must
take account of at best static funding over the planning period,
following a probable 10% cut in 2004-05.
The conclusions of the UGC are set out in the following paragraphs.
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A HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM FOR HONG KONG
2. It is worthwhile articulating again why Hong Kong must have its
own higher education system, since its high cost may lead some to wonder
whether it punches its weight. The arguments are well set out in the
Higher Education Review and some are extracted below.
(a) “In all developed communities the shape of the future will
significantly determine the future shape of universities. Equally,
the shape of its universities will partly determine the
community’s future. The indisputable reason for this is that in all
developed societies the future depends upon harnessing
knowledge and understanding to define the cultural vision and
create and respond to economic opportunity. Hong Kong is no
exception to this general rule.”
(b) “The ambition to be Asia’s world city is a worthy one, but there
is no doubt that realization of that vision is only possible if it is
based upon the platform of a very strong education and higher
education sector. There are very good reasons for that which
have to do with what universities are and what makes them
excellent.”
(c) “There are three levels of community in which Hong Kong’s
higher education sector resides. The first is, of course, the
population of Hong Kong; but this is a varied and changing
community with many dimensions. Two things, however, are
common to all of its dimensions: the need for both a strong
cultural identity and a strong economy. These are different but
related. The former concerns how Hong Kong sees itself and its
future, the latter concerns the creation of wealth and economic
growth. Universities, for reasons to be discussed, have an
essential role in the fulfillment of both…...The second and third
levels are to be found outside the Hong Kong SAR.…..”
(d) “If (teaching and learning) is done well, then that knowledge and
understanding will help the community shape the future rather
than simply react to other influences. This is at the core of Hong
Kong SAR’s future economic development. Without a highly
educated and capable workforce, with the necessary
developmental skills, there will be no success in building a
knowledge economy which is not simply appropriate for, but is
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essential to, Hong Kong’s place as a developed, internationally
focused community.”
(e) “The core functions of teaching and research will be drivers of
economic opportunity: first in providing the type of educated
workforce which is the pre-condition of a successful knowledge
economy; and second in ensuring that doors are open to the
understanding and exploitation of the ways in which our
knowledge and understanding of human beings, of human
societies and of the world in which we live, is daily being
extended.”
3. In short, Hong Kong needs its own higher education system to
provide the depth and breadth of people who can participate in making
Hong Kong a vibrant, economically powerful, cultured, civilized, and
socially active and responsible society. The higher education sector is a
key source of impetus for social development. Human capital is the single
most important asset of Hong Kong. We need home-grown graduates who
have a strong sense of belonging, and a strong sense of identity as being a
part of Hong Kong. At the same time it is also important to nurture a core
of local faculty who give stability, local character, and cultural and
intellectual rootedness to local universities, and engage themselves heavily
with the local community. Their social and public role is vital to the
development of a civil society and the quality of life.
4. The higher education system also needs to recognise and take up
the challenge of the mutually beneficial relationship between Hong Kong,
the Pearl River Delta and Mainland China- again an issue well flagged in
the Higher Education Review. Since the issue of the Higher Education
Review, the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) has been
signed and brought into force and the Chief Executive in his 2003 and
2004 Policy Addresses has stated very clearly the policy goal of broader
and deeper collaboration across all fronts – including education. Such
deeper collaboration calls for a mature higher education sector in Hong
Kong. It also calls for a sector which produces graduates who are highly
employable, mobile and versatile, keen continuously to improve
themselves and distinctive in character.
5. Academic exchange between Hong Kong and Mainland China
can play a significant role in knowledge exchange between the two places.
Hong Kong can and should play a facilitating role in linking the Mainland
and the world at large. To do this Hong Kong requires graduates who are
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culturally sensitive to the developments in the Mainland- and this is best
achieved if they are educated here in indigenous institutions. We foresee a
significant increase in the non-local student population, a large proportion
of whom will come from the Mainland. Our higher education sector,
which is internationalized, will provide Mainland students with a valuable
international perspective. The academic and economic value of a
significant increase in cross-border institutional activity could be huge. If
our institutions are alert and nimble, there is synergy, mutual enhancement
and diversified finance to be garnered.
THE EDUCATION HUB IN THE REGION
6. As the Chief Executive put it in his 2004 Policy Address: “we are
promoting Hong Kong as Asia’s world city, on par with the role that New
York plays in North America and London in Europe.” The UGC shares
this identity and shares the vision of the Secretary for Education and
Manpower that the Hong Kong higher education sector should aspire to be
“the education hub of the region”. The UGC believes that Hong Kong can
fulfill this vision, given its strong links with Mainland China, its
geographical location, its internationalized and vibrant higher education
sector, and its very cosmopolitan outlook. All these give Hong Kong a
strong competitive edge over its competitors in the region.
7. Asia is up and coming on the world stage, thanks to growingly
prosperous citizens, enormous business opportunities and increasing
political weight. Asia will become a key presence on the world map of
higher education, and will be an attractive destination for both students and
faculty. In time, if internationally-competitive centres of excellence with
critical mass can be built up in Hong Kong, given the rise of Asia, they
will become magnets - like the great centres in the USA and UK.
8. The question for the UGC - and the community - is how to
realize that vision in practical terms. In exploring this we are cognizant of
the key recurring themes in the Higher Education Review, which are:
‘performance’; ‘mission’ (ie role); and ‘differentiation’. These are
addressed in a number of ways in the Higher Education Review:
(a) strategic identification of a small number of institutions for
focused public and private sector support;
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(b) selectivity in identifying outstanding performance where it
occurs;
(c) role differentiation among institutions;
(d) performance, and performance against role;
(e) teaching excellence;
(f) research excellence; and
(g) fit for purpose governance structures to achieve the above.
9. There are several ways in which targeting of public finance,
student numbers and roles could be developed and there will be natural
tensions between some of them, as described in paragraph 1 above.
10. International experience shows that public sector support cannot
be the sole source of funds if a university system is to achieve international
excellence. In Hong Kong a very large proportion of institutional funding
comes from the public purse for education and it is unrealistic to think that
that figure can be augmented significantly. Thus an important element in
fostering international excellence is to encourage the development of other
sources of funding for institutions. This is now under way and the UGC
hopes to see such develop much more in the years ahead. Institutions are
developing closer ties with industry in advancing areas of mutual interest
through engagement in collaborative research projects, setting up of
teaching and research centres etc. With the introduction of the Matching
Grant Scheme, a stronger and broad-based philanthropic culture is taking
shape in Hong Kong. We also see generous support from charity groups
and individual members of the community. A robust higher education
sector requires the active involvement of the whole community.
11. Within public sector funding, it is vital to target funding and to
ensure that it is put to best use. As rightly put in the Higher Education
Review, “international level excellence is an elusive and, it has to be said,
resource intensive flower.” The UGC, being responsible for the whole
higher education sector under its purview, must balance the needs and
expectations of all parties. This is a difficult balance to achieve.
12. In examining this question, the UGC has come to the conclusion
that the whole of Hong Kong’s higher education sector should be viewed
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as one force in the regional and international higher education arena. The
whole of the higher education sector should seek to achieve the goal of
developing Hong Kong into the education hub of the region. Each
institution should contribute to this endeavour in its own differing and
unique way and in a complementary manner. Thus each institution should
aspire to be top in the region at what it and the UGC agree on is its role.
All eight institutions should be part of the system in their respective roles.
The roles of the institutions should describe an interlocking system, which
should be diversified, with different types of strengths or functions
predominating in different institutions. The UGC believes that this
‘nurturing’ of the whole system will ultimately be the more productive for
Hong Kong.
A DIFFERENTIATED YET INTERLOCKING SYSTEM
13. The UGC considers that public resources should be focused on
areas of excellence where they appear in institutions across the whole
sector. This recognizes that all the institutions in Hong Kong have their
own unique strengths in which they can aspire to ‘international
competitiveness’. It also recognizes that research intensive institutions
will have more areas of international competitiveness than others and will
naturally attract more public resources. Such public resources will,
however, need to be very carefully targeted, so as not to dilute the effect. It
also recognizes that research intensive institutions should be able to attract
more private funding, for the benefit of themselves and the system.
14. This approach calls upon the UGC to play a more active role in
steering the sector. It is important that in such a system, the areas of
international competitiveness are closely related to the roles of the
institutions. This means that the UGC will need to ensure institutions keep
closely to their role and do not chase or ‘misdirect’ public funding and
recognition outside that.
THE WAY FORWARD
15. To fulfill the above, the UGC will need to become a much more
proactive player, and, as stated in the Higher Education Review:
“strengthen its role in strategic planning and policy development, so as to
advise and steer the degree awarding sector.” The UGC has to ensure that
at the system level, appropriate tools, mechanisms and incentives are in
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place to steer institutions towards clear role differentiation, to facilitate
deep collaboration among institutions in advancement of their respective
roles, and to allow excellence to emerge through fair and constructive
competition. Hong Kong needs a higher education sector with institutions
operating in distinctive but collaborative and complementary roles. Each
institution should have unique areas of strength which will add value to the
overall sector. The UGC must ensure that each institution is faithful to its
role.
16. The UGC is committed to this extended role. It is equally
committed to an open and constructive dialogue with institutions about the
development of Higher Education in Hong Kong. Its intention is to help
create a clear framework within which institutions continue to have the
freedom to act and develop in their own way.
17. Hong Kong is too small a place to afford excessive overlapping
of efforts in higher education. The fiscal environment also calls for a very
effective use of public money to enable the sector as a whole to advance,
even in the face of budget stringency. It is thus imperative that the UGC,
working with all eight institutions, maximizes the efficiency of the sector.
Efficiency in higher education systems increases if more focus and larger
scale is realized. In teaching this implies more collaboration within and
between institutions to eliminate unsustainable duplication in the
educational programmes offered, and to allow the transfer of students to
interconnected programmes. In research this implies more collaboration
within and between institutions to create larger research groups with more
focused research programmes. And in non academic operations, it means
seizing all available opportunities for joint endeavours, business process
reengineering and contracting out of services.
18. The UGC will address the above areas in the following manner.
Teaching
19. The UGC-funded institutions should be diversified in satisfying
the diverse needs of the stakeholders. This means:
(a) education of personnel to meet specific manpower needs of Hong
Kong, especially in areas identified to be a driving force of Hong
Kong’s economic growth;
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(b) education of minds, all-rounded skills, broad perspectives, and
language proficiency to meet the dynamic economic, social and
political environment of Hong Kong;
(c) meeting the diverse backgrounds, needs and aspirations of the
population; and
(d) providing articulation opportunities for entry from sub-degree
levels (with time, some institution(s) may choose to focus on this
as one of its/their key roles).
Teaching Vs Research
20. An essential purpose of any higher education sector is to equip
younger generations to become thinking, productive members of society.
All institutions are therefore expected actively to strive for excellent
(‘internationally competitive’) teaching in all areas relevant to their
distinctive role statements. In order to deliver quality learning experiences,
university teachers must be at the forefront of knowledge in their areas,
and for this reason, to be involved in scholarly activities required to inform
teaching. But such activities do not necessarily need to be nor should be
translated into the provision of more Research Postgraduate places. Thus,
while research has a most important role, teaching has an indispensable
role.
Research
21. Research requiring additional UGC resources will need to be
targeted, focused, and appropriate to role. Owing to their different roles,
institutions are expected to have very selective and distinctive foci on
research. And only a small number of universities would have more than a
very few such centres of research excellence. No institutions can expect to
undertake internationally competitive research in all discipline areas.
Collaboration and Alliances
22. The UGC believes that the level and depth of collaboration and
strategic alliances taking place in Hong Kong’s higher education system is
distinctly sub-optimal both for individual institutions and for the sector as
a whole. It is incumbent on institutions to do much more in this area, not
only to improve their quality but also to make the best use of the large
amount of public funding made available to the sector. Strategic alliances
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and deep collaboration among institutions- and with overseas institutions
and the wider community- should aim to achieve the following:
(a) enhancing the breadth and depth of teaching quality in the
academic disciplines to enable a richer and more diverse subject
menu to be offered to students;
(b) developing the critical mass required to create centres of research
capable of competing at the internationally competitive level; and
(c) creating substantial efficiencies, particularly in the non academic
areas, and hence extra capacity for other pursuits appropriate to
roles.
IMPLEMENTATION
23. The UGC has recently completed a review of the role statements
of the eight institutions under its purview. These are attached at Annex A
to this document and reflect the above policy: an interlocking yet
differentiated system. In drawing these up, the UGC has deliberately
sought to develop the roles that the institutions have themselves set. Thus,
for example, the Lingnan University seeks to be an excellent liberal arts
institution- and the UGC supports it in that role. The Hong Kong
Polytechnic University seeks to emphasize application orientated teaching,
professional training and applied research and we support it in that role.
There are three themes running through the statements. The first is that all
the institutions are expected to provide internationally competitive
teaching- and research. However, all institutions are cautioned to focus
their research efforts in their areas of strength- and some will have more
than others. The second is that the UGC wishes to see much more active
and deep collaboration among institutions, within and outside Hong Kong,
and with the wider community to take forward their roles. The third is that
there should be the most effective and efficient management of resources,
through collaboration whenever it is of value. We have also provided for
an entry specific to each institution seeking to encapsulate its key
distinctive features.
24. The strategic alliances mentioned above should be designed to
meet all these aims. These alliances should go well beyond one-off
cooperation at a programme level but rather be long-term deep
collaboration between institutions (in terms of matters such as credit
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transfers, taking of courses in other institutions, joint award of degrees,
setting up joint research centres, library sharing, back-office sharing etc) or
indeed even more robust integration between institutions. The UGC sees
no reason such strategic alliances should not range beyond deep
collaboration through to full merger as circumstances and timing warrant.
25. The UGC is putting in place credible mechanisms to ensure that
it is equal to the task of steering the Higher Education System in this
endeavour. We have agreed revised role statements with the eight
institutions. Other mechanisms being introduced include:
(a) exploring institutional integration. The Report of the UGC
Working Party on Institutional Integration will be issued in
March 2004. A short Executive Summary of its key findings is
attached at Annex B to this document;
(b) introducing performance and role related funding into the UGC
funding methodology for the 2005-08 triennium. This important
undertaking will tie into funding allocation, performance- and
performance against role- much more rigorously than in the past.
The UGC believes it will have a significant effect on the way
institutions approach their priorities;
(c) setting up a Core Group within the UGC critically to examine the
Academic Development Proposals of institutions in the 2005-08
triennium and beyond;
(d) monitoring much more closely what areas institutions are
carrying out research in and what areas they undertake taught
programmes in; and
(e) setting aside (top slicing) funding to support deep collaboration
and restructuring- funding that will not be granted unless such
collaboration or restructuring takes place.
26. The UGC believes that the above practical articulation of the
aims of the Higher Education Review will facilitate the higher education
sector in building Hong Kong as Asia’s world city and in positioning Hong
Kong as the educational hub in the region. The UGC looks forward to
hearing community feedback to this document.
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Annex A
Role Statements of UGC-funded Institutions
City University of Hong Kong (CityU)
(a) offers a range of professionally oriented programmes leading to the
award of first degrees, and a small number of sub-degree
programmes;
(b) pursues the delivery of teaching at an internationally competitive
level in all the taught programmes that it offers;
(c) offers a number of taught postgraduate programmes and research
postgraduate programmes in selected subject areas particularly in
professional and applied fields;
(d) emphasizes application-oriented teaching, professional education and
applied research;
(e) aims at being internationally competitive in its areas of research
strength;
(f) emphasizes high value-added educational programmes for whole
person development and professional competencies and skills;
(g) maintains strong links with business, industry, professional sectors,
employers as well as the community;
(h) pursues actively deep collaboration in its areas of strength with other
higher education institutions in Hong Kong or the region or more
widely so as to enhance the Hong Kong higher education system;
(i) encourages academic staff to be engaged in public service,
consultancy and collaborative work with the private sector in areas
where they have special expertise, as part of the institution’s general
collaboration with government, business and industry; and
(j) manages in the most effective and efficient way the public and private
resources bestowed upon the institution, employing collaboration
whenever it is of value.
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Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU)
(a) offers a range of programmes leading to the award of first degrees in
Arts, Business, Chinese Medicine, Communication Studies,
Education, Science and Social Sciences;
(b) pursues the delivery of teaching at an internationally competitive
level in all the taught programmes that it offers;
(c) offers a number of taught postgraduate programmes and research
postgraduate programmes in selected subject areas;
(d) follows a holistic approach to higher education and emphasizes a
broad-based creativity-inspiring undergraduate education, which
inculcates in all who participate a sense of human values;
(e) aims at being internationally competitive in its areas of research
strength, and in particular in support of teaching;
(f) maintains strong links with the community;
(g) pursues actively deep collaboration in its areas of strength with other
higher education institutions in Hong Kong or the region or more
widely so as to enhance the Hong Kong higher education system;
(h) encourages academic staff to be engaged in public service,
consultancy and collaborative work with the private sector in areas
where they have special expertise, as part of the institution’s general
collaboration with government, business and industry; and
(i) manages in the most effective and efficient way the public and private
resources bestowed upon the institution, employing collaboration
whenever it is of value.
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Lingnan University (LU)
(a) offers a range of programmes leading to the award of first degrees in
Arts, Business and Social Sciences;
(b) pursues the delivery of teaching at an internationally competitive
level in all the taught programmes that it offers;
(c) offers a number of taught postgraduate programmes and research
postgraduate programmes in selected fields within the subject areas of
Arts, Business and Social Sciences;
(d) provides a general education programme which seeks to offer all
students a broad educational perspective, distinguished by the best
liberal arts tradition from both East and West, and enables its students
to act responsibly in the changing circumstances of this century;
(e) aims at being internationally competitive in its areas of research
strength, in particular in support of liberal arts programmes;
(f) maintains strong links with the community;
(g) pursues actively deep collaboration in its areas of strength with other
higher education institutions in Hong Kong or the region or more
widely so as to enhance the Hong Kong higher education system;
(h) encourages academic staff to be engaged in public service,
consultancy and collaborative work with the private sector in areas
where they have special expertise, as part of the institution’s general
collaboration with government, business and industry; and
(i) manages in the most effective and efficient way the public and private
resources bestowed upon the institution, employing collaboration
whenever it is of value.
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The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)
(a) offers a range of programmes leading to the award of first degrees and
postgraduate qualifications in subject areas including Arts, Science,
Social Sciences and Business Administration;
(b) incorporates professional schools such as Medicine, Architecture,
Engineering and Education;
(c) pursues the delivery of teaching at an internationally competitive
level in all the taught programmes that it offers;
(d) offers research postgraduate programmes for a significant number of
students in selected subject areas;
(e) aims at being internationally competitive in its areas of research
strength;
(f) contributes to the development of Hong Kong, China as a whole, and
the region through quality education, research, engagement and
service, in all the disciplines it offers;
(g) pursues actively deep collaboration in its areas of strength with other
higher education institutions in Hong Kong or the region or more
widely so as to enhance the Hong Kong higher education system;
(h) encourages academic staff to be engaged in public service,
consultancy and collaborative work with the private sector in areas
where they have special expertise, as part of the institution’s general
collaboration with government, business and industry; and
(i) manages in the most effective and efficient way the public and private
resources bestowed upon the institution, employing collaboration
whenever it is of value.
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The Hong Kong Institute of Education (HKIEd)
(a) offers a range of programmes leading to the award of certificates, first
degrees and postgraduate diplomas, which provide suitable
preparation for a career in education and teaching in the pre-school,
school and vocational training sectors; and
(b) also offers a series of programmes which provide professional
education and development for serving teachers in these sectors;
(c) nurtures through all its programmes knowledgeable, caring and
responsible teachers who will serve the needs of Hong Kong schools;
(d) pursues the delivery of teaching at an internationally competitive
level in all the taught programmes that it offers;
(e) delivers degree programmes relating to secondary education
whenever possible through strategic collaborations with other local
tertiary institutions;
(f) provides a source of professional advice and development, and of
research in education, as appropriate, to support the pre-school,
school and vocational training sectors in Hong Kong;
(g) maintains strong links with the community, and in particular the
schools and the teaching profession;
(h) pursues actively deep collaboration in its areas of strength with other
higher education institutions in Hong Kong or the region or more
widely so as to enhance the Hong Kong higher education system; and
(i) manages in the most effective and efficient way the public and private
resources bestowed upon the institution, employing collaboration
whenever it is of value.
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The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)
(a) offers a range of professionally oriented programmes leading to the
award of first degrees, and a small number of sub-degree
programmes;
(b) pursues the delivery of teaching at an internationally competitive
level in all the taught programmes that it offers;
(c) offers a number of taught postgraduate programmes and research
postgraduate programmes in selected subject areas particularly in
professional and applied fields;
(d) emphasizes application-oriented teaching, professional education and
applied research;
(e) aims at being internationally competitive in its areas of research
strength;
(f) emphasizes high value-added education, with a balanced approach
leading to the development of all-round students with professional
competence;
(g) maintains strong links with business, industry, professional sectors,
employers as well as the community;
(h) pursues actively deep collaboration in its areas of strength with other
higher education institutions in Hong Kong or the region or more
widely so as to enhance the Hong Kong higher education system;
(i) encourages academic staff to be engaged in public service,
consultancy and collaborative work with the private sector in areas
where they have special expertise, as part of the institution’s general
collaboration with government, business and industry; and
(j) manages in the most effective and efficient way the public and private
resources bestowed upon the institution, employing collaboration
whenever it is of value.
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The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST)
(a) offers a range of programmes leading to the award of first degrees and
postgraduate qualifications particularly in Science, Technology,
Engineering, Management and Business Studies;
(b) offers programmes in Humanities and Social Science only at a level
sufficient to provide intellectual breadth, contextual background and
communication skills to an otherwise scientific or technological
curriculum, and limited postgraduate work;
(c) incorporates professional schools, particularly in the fields of Science,
Technology, Engineering and Business;
(d) pursues the delivery of teaching at an internationally competitive
level in all the taught programmes that it offers;
(e) offers research postgraduate programmes for a significant number of
students in selected subject areas;
(f) aims at being internationally competitive in its areas of research
strength;
(g) assists the economic and social development of Hong Kong by
nurturing the scientific, technological, and entrepreneurial talents who
will lead the transformation of traditional industries and fuel the
growth of new high-value-added industries for the region;
(h) pursues actively deep collaboration in its areas of strength with other
higher education institutions in Hong Kong or the region or more
widely so as to enhance the Hong Kong higher education system;
(i) encourages academic staff to be engaged in public service,
consultancy and collaborative work with the private sector in areas
where they have special expertise, as part of the institution’s general
collaboration with government, business and industry; and
(j) manages in the most effective and efficient way the public and private
resources bestowed upon the institution, employing collaboration
whenever it is of value.
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The University of Hong Kong (HKU)
(a) offers a range of programmes leading to the award of first degrees and
postgraduate qualifications in subject areas including Arts, Science,
Social Sciences, and Business and Economics;
(b) incorporates professional schools such as Medicine, Dentistry,
Architecture, Education, Engineering and Law;
(c) pursues the delivery of teaching at an internationally competitive
level in all the taught programmes that it offers;
(d) offers research postgraduate programmes for a significant number of
students in selected subject areas;
(e) aims at being internationally competitive in its areas of research
strength;
(f) as an English-medium University, supports a knowledge-based
society and economy through its engagement in cutting-edge research,
pedagogical developments, and lifelong learning; in particular,
emphasizes whole person education and interdisciplinarity;
(g) pursues actively deep collaboration in its areas of strength with other
higher education institutions in Hong Kong or the region or more
widely so as to enhance the Hong Kong higher education system;
(h) encourages academic staff to be engaged in public service,
consultancy and collaborative work with the private sector in areas
where they have special expertise, as part of the institution’s general
collaboration with government, business and industry; and
(i) manages in the most effective and efficient way the public and private
resources bestowed upon the institution, employing collaboration
whenever it is of value.
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Annex B
Executive Summary of the Report of the
Working Party on Institutional Integration,
as endorsed by the UGC
The Working Party on Institutional Integration (IIWP) was
established by the UGC, following a request from the Administration, to
consider the question of institutional integration in Hong Kong generally
and specifically to examine the key potential benefits and drawbacks as
regards a merger of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and the
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). Over a
period of six months the IIWP met seven times and met with Reference
Groups from CUHK and HKUST twice. There was considerable interest
in its work, both from staff, students and alumni of the two institutions, the
wider academic community, and the community at large. The membership
of the IIWP was :
Prof John Niland (Convenor)
Mr Philip Chen
Mr Irving Koo
Mr Roger Luk
Dr Steven Poon
Dr Alice Lam (Chairman, UGC)
Mr Michael Stone (Secretary-General, UGC)
2. The key conclusions of the IIWP may be summarized as
follows :
(a) Institutional Integration should be defined broadly to
encompass a range of possible forms of collaboration,
ranging from full merger to loose affiliation, either at the
institutional level or at the intra-institutional level, such as a
department or faculty;
(b) the UGC should adopt a strategic approach towards
institutional integration. The approach should facilitate and
encourage development of critical mass in teaching and
research, greater synergy and higher efficiency in order to
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take forward Hong Kong’s aspiration to be the education hub
of the region;
(c) as a key element of the strategic approach to institutional
integration, the UGC should specifically encourage and drive
“deep collaboration” within and between institutions, in both
academic and non-academic areas, both within Hong Kong
and internationally. The UGC should establish mechanisms
and incentives in this regard; and
(d) while a merger between CUHK and HKUST might become
viable at some point in the future, it should not be further
explored for the present.
3. The UGC fully endorsed the Report at its meeting in January
2004. The full report will be issued in March 2004.
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