HKU Bulletin May 2009 (Vol. 10 No. 2)

12 13 well in securing UGC funded research postgraduate places, more so than any other institution. We are leading in the number of places we have secured, in part based on the very fine performance of our colleagues in the General Research Fund,” he says. Plans are also afoot to speed up curriculum reform. “Whereas the whole of Hong Kong will introduce the new four- year curriculum in 2012, the University Senate has agreed to roll out a new three- year curriculum, identical in many respects to the four-year curriculum, in 2010. “There are many reasons for this – we think the four-year curriculum is a great curriculum so why not do it earlier. Of course, the only difference is that we don’t have four years, so the options that students can choose from in certain areas will be constrained. “For example, it will be very difficult to do a double-major in three years. Although the curriculum structure will be the same, students will not be able to select certain options. We are also ruling out the common core subjects. They will only be able to choose two courses instead of six. “What it means is that teachers will be designing these courses in 2009-10, and they will be hiring teaching assistants to help them, so we will be creating jobs for more teachers or graduates as well,” he says. Loss of hope, a worrying sign Meanwhile the most notable impact of the recession on society is a certain loss of hope, according to Nelson Chow, Henry G. Leong Professor in Social Work and Social Administration. “For people in their late 20s, or early 30s, there is very little job security,” he says. “Even if they have a university educat ion i t does not guarantee a successful career or long term security. A few years ago people could see many oppor tuni t ies because China was developing, but this financial crisis has made them aware that what they have pinned their hopes on is no longer certain. This is upsetting the l ives of many people.” Food bank services, the traditional realm of the homeless and unemployed, are now a t t rac t i ng i nd i v i dua l s i n steady jobs. “These people are very embarrassed,” says Chow. “A lot of them had plans for themselves and for their children. They had hopes for the future – higher salaries that would allow them to send their children to good schools – but the financial crisis has changed all that. If they have lost their jobs, they have to take their children out of the international school system and send them to local schools. Others may have taken substantial pay cuts. I’m not saying these people are poor but they are struggling and very uncertain about what lies ahead. It’s this sense of limbo that is affecting people’s mental health. It is affecting everybody in one way or another, no-one is immune to it.” The elderly are amongst the hardest hit with many losing their savings and their livelihoods. “After HSBC announced a reduction in the dividend, I got a call from a 78-year-old Hong Kong lady, who has retired to the mainland,” says Chow. “Over the years she had accumulated quite a lot of HSBC shares which at one point were worth over $2 million, and these constitute more than two thirds of her savings. Now she is extremely worried about her future because she depends on her dividends. “And she’s not alone. Many retirees are suffering because of their savings are disappearing. People may have put their money in New Zealand, Canadian or Australian dollars and the value of these currencies have dropped dramatically. These people are really worrying about their future.” “Meanwhile,” he says. “The poor are working from hand to mouth and the claims for comprehensive social security assistance are climbing.” COVER STORY “Thei r assets have shrunk, the middle class and even the upper middle class, has seen its net worth evaporate by 30-40% and so Americans will need to save before they can replenish their goods. So, for the foreseeable future, the consumption power of America will be lower. And that will translate into a weaker demand for exports from this region.” But the biggest problem, according to Siu, is the lack of trust that is seizing up the credit channels. “We are facing a serious problem in trust,” he says. “Banks do not trust the borrowers and the borrowers do not trust the banks, and they do not trust the policymakers, and they do not know how the future is going to pan out. So here we are dealing with a serious problem in confidence. People are losing confidence in themselves, in others and in the system. Keeping graduates gainfully occupied To counter the projected r ise in unemployment the University is unveiling a number of initiatives that may help keep our students employed. Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Richard Wong, says HKU students have traditionally fared well in the job market. “So I’m hopeful that they will be okay.” “But there are a number of things we are doing to help. We are expanding our postgraduate programmes and the government has been very helpful in facilitating the university to allocate more funding for research postgraduate places, so we will have some growth in that area. “I should say we have done quite “The poor are working from hand to mouth and the claims for comprehensive social security assistance are climbing.” “But the biggest problem is the lack of trust that is seizing up the credit channels.”