EDITOR'S NOTE: Hong Kong's latest educational reform, which introduces a '3-3-4' academic structure, will see the city's universities rolling out four-year tertiary curricula from next year. To ensure a smooth transition, most of Hong Kong's tertiary institutions began their preparations way before the new six-year secondary and four-year university system was approved in 2009. In the coming issues, we will feature one university every other week to find out how ready they are to embrace the impending challenges and opportunities in this new era of education.
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has seen its fair share of changes over the years. Formerly known as the Hong Kong Polytechnic, it was granted full university status in 1994 - 22 years after it was established - and received approval from the University and Polytechnic Grants Committee for self-accreditation of degree programmes.
Today, PolyU is an internationally recognised institution of higher education offering more than 130 postgraduate, undergraduate and sub-degree programmes, supported by some 1,000 academic and research staff members.
'The forthcoming paradigm shift to a four-year undergraduate programme provides us with a unique opportunity to transform our education from one based on a well-established professional-oriented curriculum to one built upon a new curriculum that will enable our students to become 'practical dreamers',' says PolyU president Timothy Tong Wai-cheung.
'The Freshmen Seminar, the general education component and the reading and writing requirements will facilitate in building a solid foundation not just for their university education but also for their future,' he adds.
To cope with the expanded curriculum that starts from the 2012-13 academic year, PolyU will hire 100 additional academic staff and bring on stream four new buildings.