Medicine, Engineering, Science, Business, Social Science, Law, Education, Arts
The Chinese University of Hong Kong was officially inaugurated on 17 October 1963 as a federation of three colleges: Chung Chi, New Asia and United. It is the second-oldest university in Hong Kong, after the University of Hong Kong. New Asia College was the earliest of the three, founded in 1949, followed by Chung Chi College in 1951 and United College in 1956. Li Choh-ming was the first vice-chancellor, from 1964 to 1978.
The campus is in Sha Tin, in the New Territories, with small parts in Tai Po District. It covers about 137 hectares, and the University station on the East Rail line of the MTR and several bus routes serve it. Shaw College, the first non-founding college, opened in 1990, and the other colleges followed in the 2000s. Today the university has nine colleges: Chung Chi, New Asia, United, Shaw, Morningside, S. H. Ho, Lee Woo Sing, Wu Yee Sun and C. W. Chu. All undergraduates belong to one of them.
In 2023 the university counted 17,780 undergraduates, 4,241 postgraduates and 1,729 academic staff. Eight faculties teach arts, business administration, education, engineering, law, medicine, science and social science. A graduate school administers all postgraduate programmes.
Four Nobel laureates are linked to the university as of 2024: Chen Ning Yang, James Mirrlees, Robert Mundell and Charles Kao, who received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2009 while affiliated with CUHK. Shing-Tung Yau, who holds a Fields Medal and the Veblen Prize, and Andrew Yao, a Turing Award winner, have also been on the faculty. James Ware, a surgeon and a figure in medical education, is another.
English and Chinese are both used in teaching and administration, and the collegiate system gives students a smaller community inside a large university. Fees differ for local and non-local students. Check the current tariff. Students often live in college hostels, and the MTR connection takes visitors to the campus from the city in under an hour.
Domains taught:
Chemistry, Data Analytics, Engineering, Finance, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master, MBA
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Nine constituent colleges (Chung Chi, New Asia, United, Shaw, Morningside, S. H. Ho, Lee Woo Sing, Wu Yee Sun and C. W. Chu), and a graduate school for all postgraduate programmes.
Research:
Medicine, engineering, science, social science, business, education, law and the arts, with several Nobel laureates and the mathematician Shing-Tung Yau among its faculty.
Famous Alumnis:
Chen Ning Yang, James Mirrlees, Robert Mundell, Charles K. Kao, Shing-Tung Yau, Andrew Yao
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
1729
Current students***:
21110
Foreign students***:
N/A%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Collegiate system, large green campus in Sha Tin with MTR station, strong research, bilingual environment.
Cons
Campus located outside the urban centre, competitive admission, hilly campus.
Best For
Students who want a collegiate research university in Hong Kong with strong science, engineering, medicine and business.
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Most Similar Schools Locally
On content, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and this university are close, as both teach finance, chemistry and physics; it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba.
Also strong in finance, chemistry and physics, City University of Hong Kong makes a sensible second look at home; it does not run the mba programmes found here and covers materials and software engineering as well.
Hong Kong Polytechnic University follows much the same lines as this institution, with life sciences, data analytics and engineering as common ground, and it is larger, enrolling about 33,900 students against roughly 21,110 here, and is also a public institution.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
Seen from abroad, Tel Aviv University (Israel) is a close relative on subject matter, since finance, chemistry and statistics are central to both, and it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba.
If this university is on your list for finance, chemistry and physics, University of Porto in Portugal deserves a comparison, because it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba.
Students considering a move abroad can look at Autonomous University of Madrid in Spain, where finance, chemistry and physics also form the core, and it is larger, enrolling about 31,722 students against roughly 21,110 here, and is also a public institution.
Seen from abroad, University of Cape Town (South Africa) is a close relative on subject matter, since finance, chemistry and physics are central to both, and it covers astroscience and civil engineering as well, and is slightly larger, at about 28,233 students against roughly 21,110 here.
University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa is the nearest foreign match on finance, chemistry and physics; it covers astroscience and civil engineering as well, and is larger, enrolling about 40,259 students against roughly 21,110 here.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is the Chinese University of Hong Kong?
In Sha Tin, in the New Territories, reached by the University station on the MTR East Rail line.
When was it inaugurated?
On 17 October 1963, as a federation of three colleges.
Which were the founding colleges?
Chung Chi, New Asia and United.
Who was the first vice-chancellor?
Li Choh-ming, from 1964 to 1978.
How many colleges does it have?
Nine, and all undergraduates belong to one of them.
How many faculties are there?
Eight, from Arts to Social Science, including Medicine and Engineering.
How many students does it have?
In 2023, 17,780 undergraduates and 4,241 postgraduates.
Which Nobel laureates are linked to CUHK?
Chen Ning Yang, James Mirrlees, Robert Mundell and Charles Kao.
Which other well-known academics have worked there?
Shing-Tung Yau, who holds a Fields Medal, and Andrew Yao, a Turing Award winner.
What does it cost?
Fees differ for local and non-local students. Check the current tariff.
Biology, Engineering, Innovation, Physics, Research and Development
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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