The transition from university to the workplace is difficult for many students, not just in Hong Kong, but worldwide, and there is much debate about how universities can best prepare students for this step. The learning ideals of critical thinking, comfort with ambiguity, and dealing with ill-defined problems, are major adjustments for students going from high school to university, and from university to the working world. How are universities trying to help students to possess these qualities? What are the limitations on this from the viewpoint of university teachers, administrators, and co-op training professionals?What would university educators like to see changed about high school curricula in order to start building these competencies earlier? How can university to employer partnerships be strengthened? What is an appropriate response to a parent who says: “I want my child to study subject X, because that is the certain route to a great career”?

At this event, HKU and University of Waterloo representatives will share their views on high school to higher education transition issues, and we can enjoy a dialogue on how all stakeholders can improve to make a smoother transition for our students.

About the speakers:

Michael Wong 
Director of the University of Waterloo Hong Kong Foundation

He was previously director of community development at the Hong Kong Society

Michael is the Director of the University of Waterloo Hong Kong Foundation, which focuses on applied research collaborations at government and corporate levels in Asia. Michael has 30 years’ experience in brand value creation with Walt Disney, SC Johnson, and Ogilvy Advertising, taking custody of brands like BMW, Philips, Disney characters, Pledge, as well as building new ones.of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, where he oversaw governmental relationships, fundraising, marketing and educational programs. Michael holds a doctorate in business administration, and his research interest is in organizational behaviour.

Professor Sun Kwok
Chair Professor of Space Science at the University of Hong Kong

Prof. Kwok is a Chair Professor of Space Science at the University of Hong Kong (HKU). Between 2006 and 2016, he served as Dean of Science at HKU, and before that as a Faculty Professor of the University of Calgary in Calgary, Canada, and Director and Distinguished Research Fellow of the Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics of Academia Sinica of Taiwan. He is the current President of Astrobiology Commission of the International Astronomical Union (IAU).

During his ten year tenure as Dean of Science at HKU, he introduced a number of structural reforms, including the major/minor system, common Faculty admission, experiential learning, and student advisory system. On the curriculum side, he promoted interdisciplinary learning and introduced the core sequence of science foundation courses. He personally developed and taught a common core course “Our Place in the Universe” for seven years.

Prof. Kwok is world-leading authority in stellar evolution and astrochemistry. In addition to over 300 journal papers, he has also published a number of books, includingOrigin and Evolution of Planetary Nebulae(Cambridge, 2000),Cosmic Butterflies(Cambridge, 2001),Physics and Chemistry of the Interstellar Medium, (University Science Books, 2006),Organic Matter in the Universe(Wiley, 2011) andStardust: the cosmic seeds of life(Springer, 2013).

About the Moderator

Gavin Porter
Faculty of Science,  
University of Hong Kong

Gavin Porter has been a Lecturer in the Faculty of Science at the University of Hong Kong for the past 7 years.  Prior to HKU, he was a post-doctoral fellow in the Immunology department of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in NYC.  He holds a PhD in Molecular Pharmacology from Emory University, and a Bachelor of Science in Physiology from McGill.