News

International Student Recruitment for Intake 2020/21

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the GEO team has had to adapt to new methods of reaching out and public engagement as various levels of travel bans and social distancing measures are imposed across countries and regions. The team has organised online meetings with different formats and sizes, such as sample lectures, admissions talks, conversion sessions, virtual fairs and booths and digital meetings. Students from Bangladesh, the Chinese mainland, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, South Korea and many other countries and regions have been benefited from the various online sessions. The team is grateful to have received support from academics such as Dr Steve Boles and Dr Lawrence Cheung from the Faculty of Engineering and Professor Benny Leong and Mr Stefan Sonntag from the School of Design. Student attachés have also joined many of the virtual meetings to share their own experiences of PolyU with prospective students.   Signature event: PolyU Virtual Open House on 16-18 June 2020 GEO has teamed up with 8 faculties and schools as well as a number of current students and organised a total of 10 online information sessions during June. One of the reasons for hosting the information sessions is because school counsellors shared that they would like to learn more about the university as a whole as well as programme details. In addition, many students also shared a collective sense of interest in programme uniqueness, including programme approach, career prospect, internship opportunities and admissions requirements. While on-campus visit could hardly be carried out during epidemic of COVID-19 around the world, moving online would be an alternative. These online information sessions provided a summary of the broad range of degrees and subjects for undergraduate. The GEO team outlined the benefits of and requirements for enrolling in courses at PolyU. The team also talked about the latest updates on COVID-19 infection situation of Hong Kong and measures that PolyU taken during the pandemic. During a student sharing session, a number of international students shared useful tips with prospective students based on their own experiences. The attendees seized the opportunity to ask important and specific questions during a Q&A session. The students also shared their feedback on the online meeting process, which will be used to improve content preparation and video and audio quality to enhance online interactions between students, parents and academics in the near future. Click here to watch the series now. 

Fighting COVID-19: Innovative Responses from USRN Member Institutions

The COVID-19 pandemic has crippled even the most advanced healthcare systems, and continues to pose an immense challenge to governments and the public. However, the crisis has also shed light on the positive impact of unity, strength and a sense of community as the world rallies in response. In all corners of the world, universities, colleges and other academic communities have willingly and openly joined the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. From conducting vital research to designing and producing personal protective equipment, providing access to relevant information and offering their facilities to those in self-isolation, these institutions have lent their rich resources to support efforts to address the needs arising from the effects of the crisis. To offer some insight into how universities can contribute to this battle against the pandemic, a featured website has been developed, placing a spotlight on eight member universities from the University Social Responsibility Network and the valuable contributions that they have made to their communities and beyond in addressing COVID-19. Read more.

PolyU Collaborates with Macau University of Science and Technology

PolyU and the Macau University of Science and Technology jointly developed a novel AI-assisted diagnostic system in conjunction with other Chinese institutions for rapid and accurate diagnosis of COVID-19 pneumonia! Entitled "Clinically Applicable AI System for Accurate Diagnosis, Quantitative Measurements, and Prognosis of COVID-19 Pneumonia Using Computed Tomography", the research of the novel system was published in the prestigious international journal, Cell. The research team utilised a large computed tomography database of 3,777 patients to train and test the AI system, so that it can efficiently distinguish COVID-19 pneumonia from other viral pneumonia, and predict the severity level in 20 seconds, with an accuracy of up to 90% and above. Already implemented in many hospitals in different countries like Mainland China, the United States, Iran, Italy and Spain, the AI system could assist radiologists and physicians to perform a quick and accurate diagnosis, playing an important role when the health system is overloaded.

PolyU Leaps to the 75th in the Latest Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings 2021

PolyU is ranked 75th in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings 2021, up by 16 places from 91th of last year! The University community constantly strives for world-class excellence in education, research and knowledge transfer, and their concerted efforts are deservedly recognised in this newly released ranking results. PolyU will continue to provide a top-quality educational experience for students, and to support social and economic development through excellent research, thereby making greater contributions to Hong Kong, the nation and the world.

PolyU and University of Surrey Sign an Agreement on Joint PhD Programme Framework

PolyU and the University of Surrey (Surrey) have signed an agreement on 17 October 2019 to establish joint Dual Ph.D. degree relationship. The new joint programme will be first launched in the research fields of hospitality and tourism, and then it will be further extended to other academic disciplines in the future. This partnership aims to bring together the complementary expertise of the two universities in student research and training, and to broaden the international experience of PhD students. Surrey has been a partner university for PolyU over the past 10 years, with a range of collaborative activities particularly concentrated in our respective Schools of Hospitality and Tourism Management, both of which are ranked among the top 10 in the world. In 2017, the two universities upgraded their student exchange partnership to the institutional level, thus enabling more exchange opportunities for PolyU and Surrey students.

Visit from University of Waterloo

A delegation from University of Waterloo, led by the Nobel laureate Prof. Donna Strickland, a winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics 2018, paid a courtesy visit to The Hong Kong Polytechnic University for her first time and met with PolyU President Prof. Jin-Guang Teng. During the visit, the two universities discussed Vision Science around the common research topics on myopia and vision science between PolyU’s School of Optometry and Waterloo’s School of Optometry; and confirmed the collaboration between PolyU’s Faculty of Health and Social Sciences and Waterloo’s Faculty of Science on world-class ocular and biomedical research to address vital population health and ageing imperatives. Prof. Donna Strickland is one of the key members in this research group. She will lead a flagship project to treat age-related macular degeneration. The Waterloo delegation representatives included Dean of Faculty of Science Prof. Bob Lemieux, Prof. Laura Lemieux, Prof. Ben Thompson, Dr. Stan Woo, Prof. Lyndon Jones, Mr. Dave Timms and Ms. Pamela Smyth. The meeting has deepened the existing academic and research partnership between PolyU and UWaterloo.

PolyU Develops a New Class of Antibiotic Candidates for Fighting Against Superbugs

PolyU has developed a new class of antibiotic drug candidates for fighting against multi-drug resistant superbugs. The new drug candidates demonstrate much effective abilities of inhibiting bacterial growth than commonly used antibiotics, yet with no toxicity to human cells. It is believed that further studies on these compounds will contribute to a new era of antibiotic discovery.

Hong Kong’s First Research Platform on Urban Agriculture

PolyU established its first research-driven platform to support sustainable urban agriculture under the generous donation from Suga International Holdings Limited. With the use of innovative hydroponic technology, this laboratory has an ambition to develop the next generation of Urban Agriculture model, as well as to cultivate high quality and safe fruits and vegetables in a small indoor space.