University Review

HKBU established the School of Creative Arts on 1 July 2022 with a revitalised vision to nurture the next generation of creative talent for Hong Kong, and contribute to the city’s development as a creative arts hub for the nation and the world. The School consists of the Academy of Film, Academy of Music and Academy of Visual Arts.

It provides an ideal platform where the best art and artists can emerge and converge. The School’s integrated pool of experts from different arts disciplines also enhances HKBU’s transdisciplinary research strength in arts and technology, setting new standards for future teaching and research.

Established by the School of Communication, the Professional Journalism Fellowship scheme is the first-of-its-kind in Hong Kong which aims to raise the standards of journalism by allowing practising journalists to take a break from work to enrich their knowledge through studying at HKBU. The scheme is initiated by Professor Raymond R Wong and supported by the Dorothy Shen Wong Memorial Fund. Four veteran media professionals were selected as this year’s fellows. The selected fellows are: (from left) Mr Victor Lee Wai-tat, Mr Wu Jiangchuan, Mr Arthur Hung Kam-fat and Mr Alec Chan Tze-ling. 

HKBU and Deloitte Advisory (Hong Kong) Limited (Deloitte) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in September 2022 to promote cooperation and partnership in terms of nurturing future business leaders. Under the MoU, HKBU and Deloitte join hands to explore different collaboration opportunities, which include sharing industry insights at forums, seminars, lectures and workshops; providing career opportunities to HKBU students; and supporting student learning initiatives such as industry projects, mentorship programmes and research schemes.

In the Chinese Song Lyric Writing course taught by Professor Chow Yiu-fai (Department of Humanities and Creative Writing), students were introduced to Chinese song lyric composition and writing. Under the theme “Home and Family”, the students interviewed 36 individuals from different backgrounds about what home means for them and how they cope with the unexpected and uncertainties in life. They then channelled the stories of the interviewees into poignant lyrics and songs, which were performed at a student-led concert that represented the final project of the course. The course was supported by the Tin Ka Ping Foundation and the Centre for Innovative Service-Learning.

Students from the “Character Design and Storyboarding” course under the Department of Interactive Media showcased their animation character designs at the Hong Kong International Licensing Show from 21 to 23 April 2023 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. A flagship event for the global licensing market, the Show is considered an important platform for designers and emerging brands to see and be seen. HKBU is the first university in Hong Kong to collaborate with a leading brand licensing company, Medialink, and feature the students’ work at an internationally recognised exhibition.

Led by Dr Angela Mak (Department of Communication Studies), 40 students who took the course “Public Relations Writing” applied their professional writing skills to create a meaningful book project. The students conducted interviews with the masters, students, volunteers as well as staff at Tsz Shan Monastery, and they compiled a collection of creative work which details the mission and core services of the monastery. Written in a lively style, the book also calls upon readers to practise mindfulness, compassion and self-awareness.

The General Education course “Bringing Chinese Culture into the Community through Art Activities” aims to provide students with a capstone experience which explores the different facets of Chinese culture. Led by Dr Siu Yan-ho (Department of Chinese Language and Literature), students gained transdisciplinary knowledge of Chinese culture through analysing exemplary Chinese texts, designing teaching portfolios using art activities, and partnering with secondary schools. Guided by Dr Siu, the students collaborated with community partners to organise a market event with the theme “Culture and Technology” to share their learning outcomes and promote Chinese and local culture to the community.

The Department of Interactive Media and Teesside University in the UK launched an exchange programme, selecting six students each to jointly develop a virtual world project. Using advanced 3D animation tools, the students worked together to create a virtual reality VR game prototype. They continued to develop content for the game by collaborating remotely. Their work will be showcased internationally at the ANIMEX International Festival of Animation, VFX and Games, an annual event for promoting the art of animation and computer games development.

More than 400 guests enjoyed Pretty Heart, the first feature film presented by HKBU, at the premiere gala held in July 2022. The production of Pretty Heart was supported by seed funding from the Moral Education Fund, which was established following a donation from HKS Education Fund Limited to the University’s Academy of Film in 2017. The story of Pretty Heart is based on a script written by students and alumni of the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Creative Writing for Film, Television and New Media programme. HKBU students and alumni also participated in different roles in the film’s production. 

The annual Chinese Writers’ Workshop (CWW), founded by the Faculty of Arts, hosted the “Distinguished Chinese Writers Series” in October 2022. Renowned Chinese poet Xi Chuan shared his writing insights with HKBU students. From March to April 2023, the CWW held its “Chinese Writers-in-Residence Programme” and “Hong Kong Writers-in-Residence Programme”, featuring three Writers-in-Residence: novelist Mr Chu Yu-hsun, poet Mr Huang Canran and novelist Ms Lam Sam-wai. The writers shared their works and writing experience with readers through a variety of events, including talks and workshops.

The International Writers’ Workshop (IWW) hosted its Distinguished Writers Series in October 2022. This year’s event featured Mr Simon Armitage, Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, who discussed his work and gave a literary reading and shared his insights on writing poetry with HKBU students at a masterclass. In addition, the IWW held its annual Literary Festival in March 2023 with the theme “Turbulence · Tranquility · Transdisciplinary Writing”. The Festival featured two Writers-in-Residence, namely Ms Yan Ge from Mainland China and Ms Violet Kupersmith from the United States, who are both fiction writers. Eight other international writers also made post-programme visits and shared their work at a public literary reading.

The Academy of Music held its inaugural NC Wong Young Composers Award presentation ceremony to recognise the creation of innovative compositions by its undergraduate and postgraduate students. Selected by a jury comprising world-renowned professionals, the first, second and third prizes of the award were presented to undergraduate students Lui Kin-lok, Gloria Mui Man-sze and Lauryn Vania Kurniawan respectively. Apart from a cash award, the first prize winner’s composition was performed for the first time in the world by the award-winning French new generation string quartet ensemble, Quatour Arod.

The Language Centre organised the 12th Intervarsity Chinese Creative Writing Competition to spark young people’s passion for writing and nurture their creative thinking. The competition drew over 370 submissions, spanning poems, essays, and short stories. Five HKBU students and alumni won multiple awards, demonstrating their strong literary abilities. To engage younger students in creative writing, the competition launched a Secondary School category that saw participation from over 120 local secondary schools for the School Writer’s Award.

Dedicated to supporting the development of sports in Hong Kong, HKBU has been conducting sport science research, and it offers comprehensive and diversified sport science and management programmes to nurture sporting talent. Since the establishment of the Elite Athletes Admission Scheme (EAAS) in 2016, the University has supported many elite athletes in their pursuit of a university education with flexible study arrangements.

The University has enhanced the EAAS and launched the Talented Athletes Direct Admission Scheme (TADAS) pursuant to the introduction of the Student-Athlete Learning Support and Admission Scheme by the UGC in 2022. TADAS is specifically designed for local talented athletes who wish to study at HKBU to achieve their full potential in both sports and academic pursuits. The University supports successful TADAS entrants with personalised mentorship, academic counselling, psychological nourishment and career planning, as well as flexible study arrangements to facilitate their training and competition schedules.

In the 2022-23 academic year, HKBU enrolled 15 top athletes in its undergraduate programmes through TADAS, including Olympic gold medallist fencer Cheung Ka-long. These student athletes are all current or former members of Hong Kong, China sports teams and specialise in a diverse range of sports, namely athletics, fencing, karatedo, rugby, soccer, swimming, table tennis and Wushu. They were enrolled in the first or third year of HKBU’s Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Physical Education and Recreation Management programme and supported by university scholarships.

Ms Vicky Man (Language Centre) received the UGC Teaching Award for Collaborative Teams as a member of the English Across the Curriculum (EAC) Team. Supplementing standalone English courses, EAC initiatives offer students timely, tailor-made and targeted English learning materials across different disciplines. They also create synergy and opportunities for collaboration between English teachers and those from other subjects. To date, EAC has reached over 30 departments, 60 courses, 100 teachers and 10,000 students.

The “Academic Integrity and Ethics-Augmented Reality” (AIE-AR) project, led by the Centre for Holistic Teaching and Learning, received the Second Class Prize of the 2022 National Teaching Achievement Award (Higher Education) launched by the Ministry of Education. AIE-AR uses augmented reality to present case-based scenarios of abstract issues regarding academic integrity and ethics.

On the other hand, the Joint University Mental-Wellness Project, with Professor Daniel Wong Fu-keung and Dr Pan Jiayan (Department of Social Work) as project team members, also won the Second Class Prize. The Project provides both formal and informal learning opportunities to develop students’ potential and help them explore the meaning of life through a transformational learning pedagogy in positive education.

Gaining early work experience enables students to bridge the gap between academic qualifications and future careers. In 2022-23, over 800 students secured internships and work attachment opportunities with companies in the Mainland and Hong Kong, as well as overseas countries including Australia, Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Africa and South Korea. These placements offered students invaluable opportunities to develop essential competencies and practical experience across different fields.

Additionally, the University held the Employers’ Luncheon and the Employers’ Luncheon for Research Postgraduates to connect graduating students and research postgraduates with potential employers from a wide range of different sectors. A total of five career fairs were held on campus during the year. These career-focused events and placements empowered students to transition seamlessly into the workforce after graduation and contribute to different sectors in society.

The Office of Student Affairs (SA) organised the “Boost Your Mental Health in 5 Senses” activity under the “Mental Health First Aid Captains” programme. For five consecutive days, a variety of booths were set up on campus to promote mental well-being through engaging the five senses — sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. The booths were managed by the Mental Health First Aid student captains.

The “Mental Health First Aid Captains” programme was launched by the Counselling and Development Centre of SA in 2021. Since then, around 450 student captains have been recruited and trained. They have completed the Mental Health First Aid certificate course and received skills training on how to support others, enabling them to identify the emotional needs of their peers and offer them immediate support.

Two key features of HKBU’s holistic education are service-learning and social innovation. Service-Learning integrates meaningful community service with academic study to enrich students’ learning experience. During the year, HKBU offered 58 service-learning courses with over 2,300 student enrolments. Meanwhile, social innovation is supported through TriAngle, HKBU’s first on-campus co-working space. During the year, more than 160 social innovation events were held at TriAngle with over 4,000 student participants. TriAngle has facilitated over 11,000 hours dedicated to student-led social innovation projects.

To celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Centre for Innovative Service-Learning, an exhibition on service-learning was held on campus. Over 100 guests attended the celebratory event, including community partners, social entrepreneurs, and local and international practitioners of service-learning and social innovation.

“The Essence of Sundays” was a student-led social innovation project with the goal of fostering stronger connections between the local and migrant domestic worker community in Hong Kong. Supported by the Social Innovation Kick-Start Fund under the Centre for Innovative Service-Learning, the project was led by Angelique “Lyka” Santos, a student of the Academy of Visual Arts. She organised a series of six community art events where students actively engaged with migrant domestic workers through various activities and interviews. An exhibition of the project and an experience sharing session were held at TriAngle.

Students participating in the course “Experimental Illustration” used their creative talents and illustration skills to tell the stories of shift workers in Hong Kong. Under the guidance of Ms Pat Wong (Academy of Visual Arts), students were tasked with developing various projects, including editorial illustrations, community portraits as well as a visual narrative project. For the visual narrative project, the students worked with the social impact storytelling platform Hong Kong Shifts, conducted research about their subject, and created a series of comics. The students’ learning outcome was showcased at an exhibition titled “Shifts Illustrated”. Through collaborating with community partners, students learnt to introduce social context in their creative practice, apply their knowledge of visual communication and develop empathy for others.

The annual Social Innovation Makers Programme brings together students from different disciplines to develop innovative solutions and community engagement initiatives that create a positive impact on society. Themed “Animals in our Community”, the 2022-23 Programme focused on human-animal relationships through a series of workshops. After learning about the rescue efforts and challenges faced by animal rescue organisations and stray animals, the participants applied design thinking skills and developed social innovation ideas to address the issues.

In the programme’s competition, a student team won the championship with their project which centred around Hong Kong’s wild boars. The team then led a hiking event combined with a puzzle game about the habitat of wild boars. Participants safely observed the boars and learnt about the importance of conservation through this interesting and meaningful hike.