Hong Kong higher education in ‘rather good health’ despite protests, national security law: British rankings firm

Four of the city’s universities slip down worldwide table, with Chinese University and Polytechnic University the only ones improving their positions

Researchers say no evidence city’s institutions are suffering yet from imposition of security law

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Published: 7:00am, 9 Jun 2021Updated: 8:05am, 9 Jun 2021

Four Hong Kong universities have dropped in the latest worldwide rankings, with only Chinese University (CUHK) and Polytechnic University (PolyU) rising in the league table, but researchers said the city’s higher education remained in “rather good health”.

CUHK moved up four places to 39th among 1,300 higher education institutions worldwide assessed in the Britain-based Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings 2022 released on Wednesday, while PolyU rose nine places to 66th.

Both campuses suffered severe damage to facilities in clashes between protesters and police at the height of the 2019 anti-government protests, but QS researchers said it was hard to determine if the incidents affected their performances.

The pair placed 43rd and 75th in the 2021 rankings, respectively.

Researchers added they did not see “evidence that Hong Kong’s universities are systemically suffering” despite the Beijing-imposed national security law coming into effect last June.