Six HKUST Academics Named RGC Senior Research and Research Fellows
Prof. Kai LIU (Professor of Division of Life Science and Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering) was recognized as Research Fellowship by the RGC for his project titled “Enhance locomotor recovery by transforming a complete spinal cord injury into an incomplete injury”.
Prof. Liu and five other HKUST faculty members were recognized by the RGC across a diverse range of disciplines. They were awarded a total of over HK$37 million fellowship grants for their distinguished research capabilities by the Research Grants Council (RGC) today under the Council’s Research Fellow Scheme (RFS) and Senior Research Fellow Scheme (SRFS) for the year 2024/25. This remarkable achievement not only sets a new record for the University but also surpasses all local universities in both the number of awardees and grant amounts.
Commending our faculty members for their exceptional achievements, HKUST President Prof. Nancy IP said, “This marks another significant accomplishment of the University, shortly after we yielded impressive results in RGC’s Areas of Excellence and Theme-based Research Schemes. At HKUST, we are committed to attracting and nurturing top-tier research talents who are dedicated to making a pivotal impact on addressing global challenges. I am particularly pleased to highlight that in addition to our strong performance in science and engineering fields, our faculty members in humanities and social science have also received recognition in this evaluation. This milestone underscores the University's robust research capabilities across diverse disciplines. We will continue to foster an environment that empowers our researchers to pursue their passions and drive innovation that benefits humanity."
HKUST Vice-President for Research and Development Prof. Tim CHENG also expressed delight at the faculty’s achievements. He said, “Thanks to these additional research funding and support from RGC, our faculty members can dedicate more time to their foundational research and nurturing the next generation of research talent. This is essential for the University to further our goal of making HKUST a powerhouse of innovation and achievement."
About The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) (https://hkust.edu.hk/) is a world-class research intensive university that focuses on science, technology and business as well as humanities and social science. HKUST offers an international campus, and a holistic and interdisciplinary pedagogy to nurture well-rounded graduates with global vision, a strong entrepreneurial spirit and innovative thinking. Over 80% of our research work were rated “Internationally excellent” or “world leading” in the Research Assessment Exercise 2020 of Hong Kong’s University Grants Committee. We were ranked 3rd in Times Higher Education’s Young University Rankings 2022, and our graduates were ranked 23rd worldwide and among the best from universities from Asia in Global Employability University Ranking and Survey 2021.
