The Hong Kong Chief Executive in Council Tuesday (Dec 19) approved Hong Kong Shue Yan College's application to change its title to "Hong Kong Shue Yan University".

Secretary for Education and Manpower of Hong Kong Arthur K C Li said the upgrading of the college as the first private university in Hong Kong was a recognition of its efforts, dedication and contributions to the higher education sector over the past 35 years.

"The development of private universities adds diversity to our higher education system and provides a channel for all sectors of the society to contribute resources and efforts for the benefit of students.

"Such development is conducive to upgrading our human capital and enhancing Hong Kong's competitiveness in a knowledge-based economy," Li said.

To assess the readiness of the college for upgrading into a private university, the college invited the Hong Kong Council for Academic Accreditation (HKCAA) to undertake an Institutional Review of College in 2006. The HKCAA concluded that the college had, in overall terms, established an appropriate academic environment which merited the granting of university status.

By now, the college has attained Program Area Accreditation Status for its Arts, Social Sciences, and Commerce disciplines. For the purpose of quality assurance, external reviews will be conducted on the relevant program areas at five-yearly intervals.

Hong Kong Shue Yan College was established in 1971 as a private liberal arts college and was registered under the Post-Secondary Colleges Ordinance in 1976. It has been offering a total of 10 four-year honors degree programs since the 2001/02 academic year, all of which have been accredited by HKCAA and approved by the Chief Executive in Council.

More than 23,000 students have graduated from the college. It currently has a student population of more than 3,000.

Editor: Wing