GLOBAL RESEARCH AND
COLLABORATIONS
The School’s leading research initiatives secured major
funding support. Faculty members in Physics and Life
Science were awarded close to $100 million in total
under the University Grants Committee’s Areas of
Excellence Scheme for two projects. Three additional
research projects led by Science faculty members
gained support from the Research Grants Council’s
Collaborative Research Fund, receiving total funding of
over $23 million. The School’s research breakthroughs
continued to be published in high-impact leading
journals, such as the Journal of Computational Physics,
Nature Communications, Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences and Neuron, and secured top
national and international honors, including a State
Natural Science Award.
Faculty members played a leading role in the HKUST
IdeasLab session held at the Annual Meeting of the
New Champions of the World Economic Forum in
Dalian in September 2013. Senior academics, including
Prof Nancy Ip, The Morningside Professor of Life Science
and Dean of the School, held in-depth discussions
on brain research and aging issues with other global
experts at the session.
The School also collaborated with leading universities to
organize joint symposia, yielding rewarding academic
exchange. The First École Polytechnique Fédérale de
Lausanne (EPFL)-HKUST Joint Symposium was held in
March 2014 in Switzerland, with “Neuroscience Meets
Cell and Molecular Biology” as the main theme. This
was followed by the Biomedical Research Across the
Continents symposium in April 2014, organized with
the Schools of the Health Sciences at the University
of Pittsburgh, the School of Life Sciences at Tsinghua
University, the School of Biomedical Sciences at the
Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Faculty of
Medicine at the University of Hong Kong, and held at
Tsinghua University in Beijing.
Leveraging the success of an existing minor program
on actuarial science, the Department of Mathematics
proposed an undergraduate stream in financial
mathematics and actuarial science for high-calibre
students. The new track will provide students with
intensive training in quantitative analysis to prepare
them for career opportunities in the financial sector.
HOLISTIC STUDENT DEVELOPMENT AND
WIDENED RECRUITMENT
To sharpen students’ competitive edge, the School
commenced a Career Training and Internship Program,
providing students with greater knowledge of the
working world and individual consultation services.
The School also organized the MenTernship Program,
in which community achievers are invited to become
mentors and share their experience with students.
Students were provided with ample opportunities
to expand their experience through services to the
wider community, which included the Cambodia
Social Service Program, and research projects and
field trips in Mainland China and other Asian countries
under the University Student Sponsorship Program
in Wildlife Conservation, organized together with
the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong.
Increased recruitment efforts, through the summer
research camp, research internship and dedicated
trips to overseas institutions, have resulted in a more
diverse postgraduate student body. International
students came from a range of countries including
the United Kingdom, Germany, Mexico, and India.
The School also expanded it s connec tion with
prospective undergraduate students through a series
of events, including JUPAS admission interviews
cum discovering science at HKUST, district talks,
on-campus visits, and alumni engagement programs
for secondary school teachers.
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HKUST 2013-2014 Annual Report
