HKU adapting to meet job changes

The SAR's oldest university is undergoing its widest curriculum reforms to adapt to a fast-changing job market. The reforms at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) include a shift to the credit unit system and broader education.

The university's Pro Vice-chancellor, Professor Chan Ting-hon, said the reforms were dictated by drastic changes in job profiles.

'In the past, 90 per cent of science graduates entered the teaching field or became research fellows. Now, 20 per cent of them will be teachers while most of the rest join the business sector. The job market is changing fast and it may now be too much to teach students eight papers on chemistry,' he said.

Each faculty's curriculum will be changed to allow broader training for HKU students next year.

'Students should understand that our society, employers' expectations and the job market change quickly. The university should equip students with adaptability, flexibility and an ability to face the challenges of society.' He said society's changing manpower needs showed that graduates should have a broader training.

Each faculty had to allocate 20 per cent of its curriculum to general education, while the remaining 80 per cent was left for specific subjects. Students in some departments, like medicine, dentistry and engineering, say they have a full programme which leaves little space for general studies.

University staff, however, are discussing the possibility of the university showing flexibility and allowing such departments to dedicate less than 20 per cent of their programmes to general education.