New undergraduate programmes offered by the College of Science at City University of Hong Kong (CityU) in the next academic year will fulfill society’s demand for professionals. The new programmes include a Bachelor of Science degree programme with a stream option in Global Research Enrichment and Technopreneurship (GREAT), a law–math double degree programme, and joint bachelor’s degree programmes in partnership with the University of Edinburgh and the University of Manchester in the UK.

Professor Raymond Chan Hon-fu, Dean of the College of Science, said innovation and technology would drive economic advancement in the future, according to the Report on Manpower Projection to 2027 published by the Hong Kong SAR Government. “We have designed completely new programmes based on future trends in social development and market demand for talents. The objectives of the new programmes are to further enhance the employment competitiveness of our graduates,” he said.

The research-oriented GREAT programme will allow students to choose their streams in the second year of their studies and conduct independent research projects of their choice under the supervision of renowned scholars. Besides going for overseas for academic exchange and study, students can in addition have the opportunities to work as an intern in overseas or local technology startups. Through the integration of novel science knowledge and innovative technology, the programme will equip students with knowledge for patent applications and intellectual property rights, entrepreneurship and business plans.

The double degree programme for the Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Science in Computing Mathematics is the first of its kind offered by local universities. It grooms students to become professionals possessed of legal knowledge and mathematical analysis ability. By studying courses on law, mathematics and logic, students can acquire critical knowledge such as probability, statistics, quantitative analysis and formal logic. They will thus be able to help analyse related legal cases.

CityU has been working with prestigious overseas universities such as Columbia University in the US to offer joint bachelor’s degree programmes. Two new partners, the University of Edinburgh and the University of Manchester in the UK, will be joining with CityU’s College of Science to offer new joint degree programmes in the coming academic year. Students majoring in computing mathematics can choose to study at the University of Edinburgh, and students majoring in chemistry can study at the University of Manchester. They will take courses at CityU in the first two years and then complete the remaining two years at the overseas institutions. After fulfilling the degree requirements, they will receive two bachelor’s degrees, one from CityU and the other from the partner university.

Dr Daniel Yip Chung-yin, Chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries (FHKI), expressed his full support for CityU’s new programmes. He pointed out that the GREAT programme responded to the market’s demand for professionals excelling in research and innovative technology. The FHKI will provide internship opportunities for students studying this programme.

Professor Tan Cheng-han, Dean of the School of Law, said there were increasingly more legal cases associated with science and data due to the development of innovative technology industries. As a result, professionals equipped with legal knowledge and data analysis skills are in high demand.

At the press conference, representatives from the University of Edinburgh and the University of Manchester introduced their universities and highlighted the features of the new joint degree programmes via videos.

For more information about the new programmes, please click here.