The Review 2016

• The growing interest among students in our China Vision programme, which took more than 2,500 students to the Mainland for cultural and learning programmes in 2016, up from 840 in 2013. • The HKU-Shenzhen Hospital, which has attracted considerable interest within Mainland China and internationally, celebrated its fifth anniversary in 2016. The hospital now treats 4,000 patients a day and enriches teaching and research by providing HKU students and scholars with access to a much broader range of patients than they would encounter in Hong Kong. Innovation Innovation is at the heart of academic research, but in order to have impact, universities must set their sights beyond the scholarly world. They must seek novel ways to translate their knowledge into outcomes that meet societal needs; to identify and work with new partners outside the university sector and beyond Hong Kong; and to develop new paths and ways of teaching and learning. Innovation is also the main driver for productivity growth and economic development. For HKU to stay at the forefront in talent development in a knowledge-based economy, it must play a primary role in the modern world of open innovation. HKU has adopted these aims and introduced programmes and units that will advance not only innovation, but an innovation mindset. Examples, elaborated on elsewhere in the Review, include: • The DreamCatchers initiative, which organises workshops, competitions and other activities to promote innovation and entrepreneurship. One of the key events in 2016 was the HKU DreamCatchers 100K competition to provide seed funding for start-ups, a few of which have already entered the market. • Increased activity in patents, licensing and start-up ventures, which are an integral part of intellectual output. In 2015–16, 132 new patents were filed and 60 patents granted (it normally takes a couple of years to complete the process). The commercialisation rate is as high as 35 per cent. HKU also supported 13 start-up companies under the Technology Start-up Support Scheme for Universities at HKU (TSSSU@HKU) programme in 2016. • e-Learning content and systems that are being developed and promoted across the University with the support of the e-Learning Pedagogical Support Unit. • Recognition of innovation and impact in HKU’s annual prizes for excellence, with the introduction of a Teaching Innovation Award and a Knowledge Exchange Excellence Award. • A planned innovation centre, where staff, students, alumni and friends of the University will be able to explore new ideas and pursue joint projects. Interdisciplinarity The complexity of the modern world requires new ideas and solutions that are frequently beyond the scope of a single discipline. Research around the world is increasingly focussed on bringing ideas and fields together that were once distinct entities, and creating new knowledge and impact from that. Other fields, such as industries and professions, are also putting a premium on interconnectedness and want graduates who can swiftly adapt to new and often unpredictable situations. The University has promoted interdisciplinarity for some years through Strategic Research Themes and the Common Core Curriculum, and we are stepping up our focus in this area. Examples of initiatives in 2015–16, reported in detail elsewhere in this Review , include: • The Global Partnership Seed Fund, launched in September 2016 to support cross-disciplinary, multi-institutional activities driven by students and academic staff with partners around the world. • 19 cross-disciplinary staff appointments. These are joint appointments between two or more faculties and will facilitate interdisciplinary research. • A one-off grant of $1.5 million, earmarked for interdisciplinary knowledge exchange projects. • The first Transdisciplinary Student Research Exchange, organised through the Common Core Curriculum, in which students from HKU and Utrecht University visited each other and collaborated online on joint projects. • Convergent efforts in three strategic interdisciplinary platforms, namely Fintech, Healthtech, and Smart City. ASIA’S GLOBAL UNIVERSITY 12 Asia’s Best* #1 for Social Sciences (31 st in the world) #2 for Arts and Humanities (30 th in the world) #3 for Clinical, Pre-clinical and Health (39 th in the world) #4 for Business and Economics (29 th in the world) * Times Higher Education World University Rankings by Subject 2016–17 Connected Across the Globe 9,718 international students on campus (as of October 2016) 3,733 outbound HKU students in 2015–16 30,740 alumni living outside Hong Kong 2,284 active research collaborations (to the year ending November 30, 2015) World’s Best* #1 dentistry school in the world: HKU Faculty of Dentistry * QS World Universities Rankings by Subject 2016 nternationalisation nnovation nterdisciplinarity mpact I