Hong Kong's higher education system achieves global recognition, showcasing success of education policy
An Education Bureau spokesman today (October 9) said that, according to the World University Rankings 2026 just announced by Times Higher Education (THE), an international higher education organisation, University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universitieshave continued to hold top spots, rendering Hong Kong the only city in the world with five universities ranked among the global top 100, with all its ranked institutions gaining higher positions. The encouraging results fully recognise the achievements of Hong Kong's post-secondary education sector in its pursuit of and endeavour for excellence. They also serve as testimony to the Government's significant progress in developing Hong Kong into an international post-secondary education hub.
According to the latest THE World University Rankings, the University of Hong Kong rose two places to 33rd globally; the Chinese University of Hong Kong moved up three places to 41st; the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology jumped eight places to 58th; City University of Hong Kong advanced three places to 75th; and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University climbed one place to 83rd, staying among the world's top 100. In addition, Hong Kong Baptist University recorded an improvement in ranking, while the Education University of Hong Kong and Lingnan University entered the Rankings for the first time.
Among other parameters, Hong Kong demonstrated outstanding performance in several key indicators, with sustained progress in areas such as teaching reputation and staff-to-student ratio.
Hong Kong's post-secondary education is highly internationalised and diversified, with a pool of outstanding teaching and research talent. In the World Talent Ranking 2025 released by the International Institute for Management Development last month, Hong Kong leapt to fourth, ranking first in Asia. The latest THE World University Rankings reaffirm the remarkable achievements of the Government's education policy.
The spokesman said, "Education is the foundation of building a strong nation and advancing national rejuvenation. Hong Kong has been aligning with the national strategy of building a leading country in education and developing itself into an international hub for post-secondary education and high-calibre talent. In recent years, the Government has launched a series of initiatives, including raising the admission quota for non-local students in publicly funded post-secondary institutions; increasing the quota for scholarships; striving to establish the Study in Hong Kong brand; and stepping up efforts to create favourable conditions for capacity expansion and quality enhancement of institutions."
To further consolidate and leverage the strengths of Hong Kong's post-secondary education, the Chief Executive announced in the 2025 Policy Address that the Government will further relax the restrictions on admission of self-financing students; attract more international teaching and research talent and students; strengthen talent exchanges among the industry, academic and research sectors; anddevelop the Northern Metropolis University Town. These measures aim to boost Hong Kong's growth impetus and contribute more proactively to the country's development.
Following the Government's doubling of the enrolment ceilings for non-local students of UGC-funded universities from 20 per cent to 40 per cent from the 2024/25 academic year, the number of non-local students enrolled in the UGC-funded programmes has recorded double-digit year-on-year growth, with students coming from over 100 countries and regions. To support continuous capacity expansion and quality enhancement of the post-secondary education sector, on the premise of ensuring opportunities for local students to pursue further studies, starting from the 2026/27 academic year, the Government will raise the enrolment ceiling for self-financing non-local students for taught programmes of funded-post-secondary institutions from the level equivalent to 40 per cent of local student places to 50 per cent; and the over-enrolment ceiling of self-financing places of funded research postgraduate programmes will be increased from 100 per cent to 120 per cent. Moreover, the Government will establish the cross-departmental Task Force on Study in Hong Kong to further promote Hong Kong's higher education and quality resources in areas such as academic studies, scientific research and international co-operation to attract more students and scholars to study or conduct research in Hong Kong.
The spokesman added, "These achievements fully showcase the effectiveness of the Government's continuous commitment to investing in education and proactively leading the post-secondary education sector in Hong Kong to expand capacity and enhance quality, seeking changes through innovation, as well as the support of a series of policy measures for building world-class universities and academic subjects. In the coming decade, along with the rapid education development of our nation, Hong Kong's education will also embrace a golden era. We will continue to deepen Hong Kong's role as an international hub for post-secondary education and a converging point of global talent, seize opportunities, and leverage strengths for contribution to the development of Hong Kong and the country."
Source: AI-found images
