HKUST's world reputation rises as HKU's slides

The venerable University of Hong Kong could soon see its undisputed title as the city's most reputable institution for higher education usurped by young upstart the University of Science and Technology, if the latest international rankings are anything to go by.

The city's oldest university slid to 43rd place in the latest Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings, from 36th last year. But HKUST, which was in the 91-100 range in its first ranking in 2011, continued its steady rise and was placed in the 51-60 band this year, from 61-70 last year. Chinese University, the other local institution in the top 100, remained in the 81-90 band.

The rankings were based on a poll of more than 10,000 academics worldwide, who were asked to give their views on the perceived prestige of various universities around the world.

Phil Baty, editor of the Times Higher Education Rankings, said the decline would be disappointing for HKU and warned that the institution might soon be replaced by HKUST, which was 90 years its junior, as the city's most reputable university.

"If those trends continue, it seems likely that maybe in two, three or five years' time, we may find them swapping places," Baty said, attributing HKUST's success to its ability to "find a clear niche and excel in a focused area" like other rising universities such as the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology.

"Being a large comprehensive university can be a much greater challenge in terms of maintaining excellence across the board as resources are spread more thinly," he said. "Maybe it's one of the reasons HKU has been having some difficulties."