A team of five students from the Department of Public and Social Administration, City University of Hong Kong, outperformed other universities to clinch the championship prize of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Student Day 2005, on 12 March. The students’ presentation on the construction of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge demonstrated their professional knowledge, and good analytical and presentation skills. It also exemplified City University’s commitment to professional education.

In their presentation, the SA students impressed the judges with a holistic analysis of the cost and benefits of a Single-Y and Double-Y bridge design in the context of the Pearl River Delta. They demonstrated their ability to formulate solutions for an unseen topical problem within a short time frame of 90 minutes.

 

“I found the analytical skills I learned in the classroom highly applicable to the competition. Through participating in this competition, I am convinced that transport and logistics plays an important role in fostering the socio-economic development of any territory,” Miss Mandy Sham, the team’s leader, said. Miss Sham will further explore the topic and prepare herself to join the CILT as a member. “We also learned how to work under pressure, and quickly develop trust in each other in order to complete the task,” Miss Vivine Chow, the team’s presenter, added.

 

The five winning students Miss Mandy Sham, Miss Vivine Chow, Miss Eunice Chan, Mr Tony Wong and Mr Kenneth Yu are undergraduates of the SA’s Bachelor of Social Science (Hons) in Policy Studies and Administration (BSSPSA) programme. To train high calibre professionals to join the public and private sector, the BSSPSA provides students with well-rounded training in policy studies and public administration. Students have ample opportunities to conduct data collection, policy analysis, and make presentations.

 

“Even though they were given an unknown topic, they applied their analytical skills and knowledge of current affairs and worked as a team. All of these are transferable abilities,” said Dr Rebecca Kwok, Instructor I of the Department of Public and Social Administration. “Winning the championship will bolster the students’ confidence and lend added value to their future endeavors,” she noted.

 

The CILT of Hong Kong is the professional body for various sectors in transport and logistics, including air, sea and land, for passenger and freight movement. Its membership of around 1,300 includes experienced practitioners in the shipping, logistics, airline, railway and pubic transport industries and Government.

 

City University emphasises application-oriented teaching and professional education. The Department of Social and Public Administration has participated in the CILT Student Day over the past four years. CityU students have won the championship twice and twice were the first and second runners-up.