Why Hong Kong is drawing record student interest
Hong Kong’s universities are experiencing a surge in demand from beyond the city, especially from mainland China. Since 2021, the number of non local students has almost doubled. The rush is most visible in postgraduate programs in data science, finance, engineering and artificial intelligence. Many applicants see Hong Kong as a place that combines global exposure, English language teaching and proximity to the mainland. The result is a new energy on campuses and a noticeable shift in the streets around them.
The influx is feeding a city economy that has struggled through a long property downturn. Private rents are near record levels, and landlords near major campuses report tight vacancies. Universities with strong balance sheets are acquiring buildings for teaching and student housing. Construction cranes and renovation crews are now part of the skyline around Sai Ying Pun, Clear Water Bay, Ma Liu Shui and Hung Hom. Cafes, tutoring centers and co working spaces are multiplying to serve the growing student base.
Demand is rising for undergraduate seats too. Hong Kong degree structures often let students declare a specialization later and graduate with more than one major. For families weighing a choice between an elite mainland campus and a global city that speaks English, this mix has strong appeal. Career services are tuned to multinational employers and regional firms, and graduates can step into the Guangdong Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay Area with short travel times.
What makes Hong Kong programs different
Students often point to a few differences that matter during a four year degree or a one to two year master. Teaching is in English at the leading institutions, the curriculum is broad in year one, and internships are built into many programs. For those seeking a career in finance, logistics, gaming, biotech or applied AI, the city offers dense networks of employers, alumni and venture investors.
Curriculum flexibility and English teaching
At the University of Hong Kong, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, City University and Polytechnic University, first year students typically complete a common core and then choose a major. Many finish with a double major or a major minor pairing. This model reduces early pressure to lock in a field at age 17. It also makes it easier for a computer science student to add business analytics or for an economics student to add public policy.
English language instruction, paired with Chinese and bilingual options, prepares graduates for roles in international companies and research teams that publish in global journals. For mainland applicants, this feature is a strong reason to look south. It can also be a bridge to PhD programs abroad, since coursework, references and research papers are produced in English from day one.
Internships and industry access
Hong Kong’s dense business grid gives students unusual access to internships during term time and the summer. Banks, professional services firms, global retailers and tech firms fill Central, Kowloon East and the New Territories science parks. The Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation says its network includes more than 2,300 tech companies from 25 countries and regions and over 15,000 research and development professionals. That scale helps students find mentors, projects and jobs without relocating.
The city is actively recruiting top students on the mainland. In May 2025, a Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks delegation visited Beijing for sessions at Peking University and Tsinghua University. The team met entrepreneurship groups and spoke with students about internships, startup support and research roles. Albert Wong, the chief executive of Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks, framed the pitch in simple terms.
“Where there’s talent, businesses will follow.”
How rankings compare
Rankings paint a mixed picture of competition and shared strength. Tsinghua University retains the top position in Asia in the 2025 Times Higher Education Asia University Rankings for the seventh year. Peking University is second. Hong Kong institutions occupy several high places, with the University of Hong Kong at sixth and the Chinese University of Hong Kong at ninth. Six Hong Kong universities placed in Asia’s top 50 for the first time since 2017, a sign of breadth across the system.
In computer science, Tsinghua sits at or near number one in several global lists, including CSRankings and U.S. News Best Global Universities. The data behind those tables focus on output in leading conferences and journals. They capture the scale of China’s research push in artificial intelligence and systems. Hong Kong’s strongest programs, such as those at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, also show up at the top of field specific tables, and they benefit from a talent pool that is both local and international.
Competition meets collaboration
Rivalry for applicants and faculty does not prevent deep cooperation. The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Tsinghua University signed three agreements in July 2025 to expand joint work in research and education. The plan includes an integrated Master PhD track in electronic and computer engineering that starts with an exchange from the 2025 to 2026 academic year. Students who complete the master can apply to the partner’s PhD program. The two universities also created a cross institutional research fund, with each side to allocate one million in local currency per year over four years to support projects in AI, biomedical science, advanced materials, robotics, energy, data science and fintech. A new executive education program will connect technology, management and finance for mid career learners.
These agreements build on a bilingual Doctor of Business Administration that the two schools previously launched, along with events such as the International AI Cooperation and Governance Forum 2023. Cross border initiatives also include a dual degree in economics run by Tsinghua University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong. The pattern is clear. Students and professors can choose collaboration as easily as competition.
Social science leaders are moving in the same direction. At a deans forum that brought together Tsinghua University, Peking University, the University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, speakers argued that combining national level expertise from Beijing with community level research traditions in Hong Kong produces better analysis and policy ideas for shared challenges.
Student exchanges are also part of the story. After the spring 2025 session of a Georgetown University and Tsinghua University student dialogue on relations between the United States and China, Bennie Chang, a Georgetown undergraduate who joined the program, reflected on how face to face time on both campuses shaped the group’s work.
“Our differences became a source of learning, not distance.”
Costs, visas and campus life
Tuition and living costs are a central factor in the choice between Hong Kong and mainland campuses. Public university tuition for non local students in Hong Kong is well above rates at most mainland universities. Housing, food and transport in Hong Kong also sit at the high end for Asia. Scholarship offers, university housing guarantees and research stipends can narrow the gap. Many postgraduate programs attract applicants with assistantships and funded lab positions.
Hong Kong’s stay arrangements for graduates add another draw. The Immigration Arrangements for Non local Graduates allow eligible alumni to remain in the city to seek work after finishing a degree. That option matters to students who want international experience without a second move immediately after graduation. Mainland campuses, including Tsinghua University, offer a different set of advantages, such as larger labs in some fields and access to national research programs that are among the most ambitious in the world.
What this means for the city economy
The student wave supports retail, transport and services across university districts. Landlords feel the impact most. Rents near HKU, HKUST, CUHK, CityU and PolyU have climbed, and listings that target students, from shared flats to purpose built dorms, are in short supply during peak intake months. Universities are adding beds, converting owned buildings and entering long leases to stabilize housing. City planners and campus leaders face a basic capacity question as cohorts grow.
The effects extend beyond housing. Employers benefit from a larger pool of bilingual talent. Startup founders in biotech, fintech and robotics find it easier to recruit. The government’s talent schemes, including the Top Talent Pass Scheme, work in tandem with university pipelines to attract skilled people who might otherwise settle in Beijing, Shanghai or Shenzhen. Those flows help Hong Kong diversify beyond property and travel.
Highlights
- Non local student numbers in Hong Kong have almost doubled since 2021, with most growth at the postgraduate level.
- Rents are near record highs and universities are acquiring or leasing buildings for classrooms and student housing.
- Hong Kong draws applicants with English language teaching, flexible majors and dense internship access.
- Tsinghua tops the 2025 Times Higher Education Asia University Rankings, while HKU is sixth and CUHK is ninth.
- Six Hong Kong universities placed in Asia’s top 50 for the first time since 2017.
- Tsinghua leads several global computer science lists, reflecting China’s scale in AI and systems research.
- HKUST and Tsinghua signed new agreements in 2025 to launch an integrated Master PhD track and a joint research fund.
- Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks visited Beijing to recruit at Tsinghua and Peking University, aiming to draw talent to the city.
- Post study stay options in Hong Kong make the city attractive for international career starts.
- Cross border student dialogues and deans forums show collaboration alongside competition.
