Frequently Asked Questions
Non-JUPAS Year 1
6
Frequently Asked Questions
General
When is the application period?

Please click here to check the application period. Departments will consider applications on a rolling basis until places are filled.

How do I get information on schemes / programmes and admission?

Please click the individual scheme / programme entry here to check the scheme / programme information, application deadlines and other details.

Can I apply through JUPAS as well as to PolyU direct?

If you have obtained HKDSE results as well as other qualifications, either of which alone is sufficient to qualify you for consideration for admission to our schemes / programmes, you can apply either through JUPAS on the basis of HKDSE results or directly to PolyU on the basis of other qualifications. However, you can only choose to apply through one of these two routes for schemes / programmes offered under JUPAS in the same academic year. If you apply through JUPAS and to PolyU concurrently, your direct application to PolyU will NOT be considered. Please however observe UGC's guidelines on inter-institutional transfer of students irrespective of the routes you choose.

 

If you have obtained HKDSE results only, you should apply through JUPAS. Please refer to the JUPAS website for details.

Who are "non-local" applicants?

Please click here for the definition of non-local applicants.

 

Local and non-local applicants are considered under different admission schemes. The levels of tuition fees for local and non-local students are also different for most schemes / programmes. If your status changes from non-local to local or vice versa after you have submitted your application, any offers made under the initial admissions scheme may be cancelled and your application will be considered in competition with other eligible applicants under the subsequent admissions scheme.

Can I be considered as a mature applicant?

Those who have reached the age of 25 before 1 September in the year in which they seek admission are categorised as mature applicants automatically for consideration of Department. Mature applicants without the stipulated entrance qualifications may only be admitted on an individual and exceptional basis, and they must demonstrate sufficient motivation, knowledge and potential to indicate a high probability of being able to complete the scheme / programme successfully. It is not necessary for applicants to apply as a Mature Applicant. We will automatically take this into consideration.

Who should apply for senior year admission?

Associate Degree / Higher Diploma final year students or graduates should apply for Senior Year admission to our full-time degree schemes / programmes. They should select the schemes / programmes specified for senior year admission via our eAdmission. If you would also like to be considered for admission to the first year of the 4-year degree schemes / programmes in case your senior year applications are not successful, please indicate such intention in your application.

What are Top-up degree programmes?

Top-up degree programmes are designed for Associate Degree / Higher Diploma holders. The normal duration of top-up degree programmes is usually 2 years. You may read the details here. Associate Degree / Higher Diploma final-year students or graduates looking for articulation opportunities could also apply for admission to these programmes.

Which scheme / programme considers first-choice-applicants only?

All programme choices are considered with equal priority. No scheme / programme consider first choice applicants only.

Can I apply for re-admission if I have withdrawn from a programme of study at PolyU in the previous academic year?

Students who have been required to withdraw on grounds of academic failure or have been de-registered, and those who have discontinued their studies without completing the proper procedures for official withdrawal, shall not be considered for re-admission to the same scheme/programme/stream in the following academic year. If you apply to the same programme, you shall be disqualified and your application will not be further processed. Fees paid will not be refunded. You are however still eligible to apply for admission to other programmes.

When will the offer of a scheme / programme marked with "subject to approval" be confirmed?

You can assume that the offer is confirmed unless you are separately notified of its non-approval.

What if the scheme / programme I have applied for is cancelled?

In that case, both the tuition fee and application fee (if you have only one scheme / programme choice) paid will be refunded to you.

Where can I find the scheme / programme interview information?

You can click here for more information.

What is Secondary Major?

A Secondary Major features an expanded area of studies in addition to an existing major, i.e. the Block X, forming an additional award option of "A Major plus a Secondary Major", i.e. "X + Scheme". Two Secondary Majors available for students to choose are "Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics (AIDA)" and "Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IE)".

 

Please click here to learn more about it.

Entrance Requirements
What are the entrance requirements?

Please click here to read the General Entrance Requirements.

What are the English Language requirements?

Please click here to read the English Language Requirements.

What are the PolyU codes for IB, TOEFL and SAT/AP?

PolyU’s Institution codes are as follows:

 

ACT2764
IB00251
SAT / AP7261
TOEFL0732
Do you accept applications from applicants with non-local qualifications? What non-local qualifications do you consider for admission to undergraduate schemes / programmes?

PolyU welcomes applications from quality candidates from around the world. Please check the guidelines on non-local qualification.

Fees and Financial Assistance
How much is the application fee?

A non-refundable fee of HK$450 will be charged for each application.

Am I eligible for the financial assistance scheme?

Full-time local students on government-funded schemes / programmes are eligible to apply for financial assistance from both the Government and PolyU. For details, please visit the Student Affairs Office’s webpage.

Is the tuition fee paid refundable?

All fees paid will not be refunded except in the case of scheme / programme cancellation. However, for new students who are admitted to government-funded schemes / programmes and apply for withdrawal of study before the start of a semester, exceptional arrangement will be made to refund the tuition fee paid after deducting the initial fee.

Online Application
How should I submit my application?

Please submit your application online via our eAdmission.

Can I submit more than one application?

For our full-time Bachelor's degree schemes / programmes, you can submit only one application, with up to two programme choices.

How can I verify my application data?

Please log into your eAdmission account to verify your application data. If you find any discrepancy between your entry and our record, you should contact us immediately (please quote your application number in all your correspondences with PolyU).

 

As the information you entered in the online application form will form the basis on which your application will be considered, you should make sure that it is complete and accurate. Otherwise, your chance of admission may be affected. Any offer made will also be withdrawn if the decision is based on incomplete and inaccurate application data.

How can I update my application data?

Once you have submitted your application, you are not allowed to change the choice(s) you selected earlier. However, you would still be able to update additional educational details / qualifications and upload relevant supporting documents to the online portal.

How can I know my application result?

You will be notified by email if you are shortlisted for interview/test. If you are given an offer or a conditional offer, you will be informed via email/SMS. You may also log into your eAdmission account from time to time to check the progress of your application.

 

Offers are normally made on a rolling basis between December and August. If you do not receive any notifications by early September, you can assume that your application is unsuccessful. No separate notification will be sent for unsuccessful cases.

What should I do to accept an offer or a conditional offer?

You should:

 

  • Indicate your acceptance and settle the initial fee before the "last day for payment" shown in the first debit note of your Notice of Offer;
  • Settle the remaining tuition fee before the "last day for payment" shown in the second debit note of your Notice of Offer; and
  • For conditional offer, you have to complete the procedures of meeting the conditions stated in the Notice of Offer; and
  • Perform online programme registration according to the date and procedures specified in the Notice of Offer.

 

Otherwise, you will be considered as having given up your study place which will be offered to another applicant.

Will I be given offers by more than one programme choices for my application?

Yes, offers may be given at different time.

Can I decline an offer in order to be reconsidered by another programme choice?

You may be given more than one offer. The acceptance or declination of an offer from one programme choice will not affect the chance of admission to the other choice. However, you can only accept the offer from each programme choice once at any one time.

Documents Submission
Should I submit documents to academic departments direct?

No, except for materials that cannot be uploaded, e.g. design portfolio.

 

Please upload the documents to your online application and departments will be able to read them together with your application data.

 

You NEED NOT submit more documents than required as non-required documents will not be considered by departments. Please check the “Additional Documents Required” section of e-prospectus for the details.

What should I do if I want to submit additional/supporting documents after application submission?

You are expected to submit all necessary documents in support of your application (except for documents which are not yet available at the time you submit your application) when you submit your application. However, if you need to submit additional / other supporting documents after submission of application, please scan the additional documents and log into your eAdmission account to upload them.

 

Uploaded documents should be:

 

  • In black and white
  • In A4 size
  • With low quality high compression (e.g. 300dpi)
  • Less than 5 MB per file
  • PDF or JPG files


You should not submit any documents to departments direct except for materials that cannot be uploaded, e.g. design portfolio.

I received a conditional offer. Do I need to submit a certified true copy of my supporting documents for meeting conditions?

No. You are only required to upload a copy of your supporting document (it can be a screen capture, photo or an electronic copy of the official document) for meeting conditions on the specified date shown in the notice of offer via our eAdmission.

When should I submit the original / certified true copy of my supporting documents to PolyU?

After accepting an offer / meeting the conditions of an offer, please arrange documents required for verification to be sent directly by the awarding bodies to the Academic Registry of PolyU at your earliest time (at least 5 to 7 working days before the first day of programme registration). Upon completion of the verification process, we will send you an email reminding you to complete the programme registration online. Please refer to your notice of offer for details.

 

Failure to provide required documents for verification or any discrepancies found in the submitted documents may lead to the cancellation of your offer and registration at the University. Fees paid will not be refunded.

My academic documents are not in English. What should I do?

Please provide officially translated copies of the documents certified by your institutions, Ministry of Education or legal authorities in addition to copies of the original documents. Otherwise, your application may not be considered.

Transfer of Study / Credits
Will I be granted credit transfer from my previous studies?

If you are admitted on the basis of IB or A-Level qualifications, you may be given a credit transfer from 9 credits to a maximum of 25% of the award requirements, depending on your previous study and grade attainments. If you are a holder of an Associate Degree/Higher Diploma and admitted to Year 1 study, you may be granted credit transfer up to a maximum of 25% of the credit requirements of our 4-year full-time undergraduate degree schemes / programmes.

 

Departments will consider if your previous studies are relevant to your chosen scheme / programme to decide if you will be granted credit transfer or exemption from some scheme / programme requirements. Each case will be considered on individual merits and you will be informed of the number of transferred credits given in the Notice of Offer.

 

If you are not given credit transfer at the admission stage, you may consider submitting an application for credit transfer after enrolment on the scheme / programme together with relevant supporting documents, e.g. transcript of study and subject syllabus to your scheme / programme offering departments before the end of the add/drop period of the first semester of your first year of study for departments’ consideration.

Can I apply for a transfer from the first year of a full-time government-funded degree scheme / programme to the first year of a full-time government-funded degree scheme / programme at PolyU?

Repeating of government-funded study across institutions, irrespective of whether there is a change of programme or discipline, is generally discouraged, and only cases with very good reasons will be exceptionally considered on a case-by-case basis.

If I am studying at PolyU and wish to transfer to another scheme / programme within PolyU, should I apply via the non-JUPAS route?

It is the University’s policy that new students will not be considered for transfer to another scheme / programme offered in the same mode of study during their first semester of registration.

 

If you are studying a government-funded scheme / programme of PolyU and wish to transfer to another PolyU government-funded scheme / programme of the same level of award, you should submit an application for transfer of study instead of a new application in the non-JUPAS application period. Current Higher Diploma students applying for degree level of study and have submitted an application via JUPAS are not allowed to submit a further application for transfer of study within PolyU.

Non-Academic Achievements
Will my non-academic achievements be considered?

PolyU supports the all-around development of students and gives due recognition to the non-academic achievements of applicants in the admission selection process. Applicants with outstanding non-academic achievements (e.g. with awards/prizes attained in prominent international competitions) will be favourably considered for admission in the selection process.

 

Applicants concerned should provide relevant information and documents in their applications within the application period and will only be considered by their first programme choice. We, however, still require applicants to be admitted on the basis of outstanding non-academic achievements to meet the minimum entrance requirements of the schemes / programmes before they are eligible for consideration.

Is it necessary for me to fill the non-academic achievement section of the application form?

No. The non-academic achievement section is optional.

Is there any special arrangement to help sportsmen to manage their studies?

To enable sportsmen to manage their participation in trainings, competitions and academic studies, the normal duration for completing the programmes for students admitted via Outstanding Sportsmen Recommendation Scheme (OSRS) will be automatically extended for two years with retroactive effect from the 2020/21 intake cohort.

 

Eligible OSRS candidates will be considered automatically by the Student-Athlete Learning Support and Admission (SALSA) Scheme. Holistic support services will also be provided to student-athletes throughout their study at PolyU, please refer to here for details.

What is the Special Talents Admission and Recognition Scheme (STARS)?

Students who have demonstrated remarkable talents in sports, arts and culture, leadership and community services, and STEM will be considered under Special Talents Admission and Recognition Scheme (STARS). It aims to serve as an alternative admission route for those whose exceptional achievements cannot be fully reflected in their academic results. STARS applicants to PolyU's undergraduate programmes will be assessed based on the non-academic achievements, self-description and referees submitted in their applications.  Selection panels will assess these applications and will make result announcement from April onwards.

Online Programme Registration
Do I need to come in-person for programme registration?

No, it is not necessary for admittees to perform programme registration in person starting from the 2021/22 academic year. You just need to follow the instructions in your notice of offer to perform programme registration online.