PAST AND PRESENT
The University of Hong Kong is the oldest tertiary education institution in Hong Kong. It was founded in 1911, and opened in 1912 with teaching programmes in medicine, engineering and arts. Since then, the University has grown substantially, and now embraces a very wide range of teaching and research programmes. In 2025-26, the student population of the University (including postgraduate students) was around 44,100 headcounts and the professoriate staff population was over 1,210 headcounts. There are ten faculties: Architecture, Arts, Business and Economics, Dentistry, Education, Engineering, Law, Medicine, Science and Social Sciences. Each faculty has a faculty office. Students needing advice on their studies and other academic matters should contact their home faculty office in the first instance.
GOVERNANCE OF THE UNIVERSITY
The University of Hong Kong was established and incorporated by the University Ordinance 1911,which in 1958 was replaced by the University of Hong Kong Ordinance (Cap. 1053). The Ordinance outlines the University's powers, duties, privileges and constitution and empowers it to make, repealand amend the Statutes of the University. The Statutes set out in detail important constitutional andprocedural matters. The Ordinance and Statutes empower the Council and the Senate to make regulations, which provide for the orderly conduct of day-to-day operations.
The Ordinance and Statutes also define the responsibilities of the University's Court, Council, Senate and Boards of Faculty. All of these bodies may form committees and delegate to them their powers, but not their responsibilities, as they see fit.
The Court is the University's supreme advisory body, and comprises representatives of the University and of various constituencies of the local community. The Court enables wider interests served by the University to be associated with it and provides a public forum where Court members may raise matters about the University.
The Council is the supreme governing body and is responsible, among other things, for the University's finances and investments, management of its estate and buildings, staff appointments and terms and conditions of service, and drafting of Statutes. The Council comprises University members (both staff and students) and lay members, and the membership is specified in the Statutes by category of appointment. The Council has a lay majority, with one lay member assuming the position of Chairman. The ratio of lay to University members is 2:1.
The Senate is the principal academic authority of the University. The President & Vice-Chancellor chairs the Senate, which comprises mainly academic staff and students. Senate decisions on academic matters with financial or resource implications are made in consultation with the Council. Conversely, Council decisions with academic implications are subject to consultation with the Senate, with the latter normally being the initiating body.
Boards of Faculty are responsible to the Senate for teaching and other work of the Faculties. They are supported by their own committees which exercise powers and perform duties delegated to them by the Boards.
|
