HKUST Annual Report 2017-18

4 Chairman’s Foreword As industrial revolution 4.0 advances and the era of artificial intelligence, big data and internet of things starts to make its presence felt in a rising number of fields, universities must increasingly prepare their students for emerging sectors, unfolding technology discoveries and developments, and new ways of working. Such thinking is embedded throughout HKUST’s recent Strategic Plan, which entered its second year in 2017-18 and is enabling the University to add to its graduates’ capabilities to initiate, foster, and capture the openings arising from our transformative times. It is doing so by creating the framework for insightful educational advancement, inspiring knowledge discovery, and deeper contribution to knowledge transfer and social and economic development. HKUST’s rise to the No.1 position in the world in the Times Higher Education Young University Rankings in 2018 offered reinforcement of this positioning and HKUST’s on-going adaptation to the fast-evolving global environment. The eminent local and international faculty that HKUST attracts, and keenly endeavors to retain, are essential in such institutional achievement, ensuring the University maintains its ability to deliver top education and research to today’s young people in Hong Kong and from many different locations around the world. Over the year, these academics’ individual excellence was further acknowledged by numerous honors, including a State Natural Science Award (First Class) – only the second awarded to a Hong Kong scholar since the city started to participate in the awards in 1989 – and an induction into the US National Inventors Hall of Fame. However, as the world heads deeper into this disruptive century, it is becoming clear that a leading education must not only encompass novel digital pedagogies and interdisciplinary programs but look beyond campus days to assist graduates in their transition to the working world. In line with this development, HKUST is placing greater emphasis on internal and external internship opportunities, with hundreds of students benefiting in 2017-18. The University’s constant search to unlock individual potential and passion, and build all-round knowledge and skills helped to put HKUST graduates in the top 20 worldwide and No.1 in Greater China for the fifth consecutive year in the Global Employability University Ranking 2017. Meanwhile, numerous entrepreneurship talks and workshops during the year drew thousands of students, generating enthusiasm and impetus on the start-up economy front. To keep the institution itself efficient, flexible and responsive to external change, the Council continued to augment governance and oversight through the Task Force on the Review of Council Effectiveness and related working groups. Over 2017-18, the Council approved a University accountability agreement, which outlines HKUST’s roles and responsibilities, and serves as the basis of the formal agreement to be signed by the University and the University Grants Committee; and a new governance process related to large capital works to ensure effective oversight of forthcoming capital projects. In addition, a clearly defined policy and guidelines on donations will enable the University to adhere to more stringent governance requirements for all fundraising activities and naming arrangements. The development of risk management policies and procedures enhanced institutional preparedness while the University Retreat saw Council members’ advice actively sought and given on the formation of key performance indicators to assess management’s progress on Strategic Plan objectives. Council members also provided support for the University’s exploration of opportunities in significant large-scale The growing demand for 21st-century skills in the workplace in response to fast-moving technological innovation and globalization, is creating a fresh urgency for higher education to meet the needs of our changing economic and social landscape, both locally and worldwide.