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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) from Successful
Applicants
1. What procedures do I need to follow after
receiving the offer/conditional offer of admission?
2. Are photocopies of transcripts
and certificates acceptable to the University?
3. What does a "certified true copy" mean?
4. How can I apply for visa application? Who
will be my sponsor?
5. When should I submit my visa application?
Do I need to wait until I have got the formal offer?
6. How can I apply for deferment of
composition fees payment?
7. I am a non-local student and do not have a
Hong Kong bank account. How should I fill in the Personal Record
Form?
8. What should I do if I cannot come on time
to register?
9. How can I apply for deferment of registration
date?
10. What is the amount of Postgraduate Scholarship
(PGS) and when will I receive it?
11. When and how should I submit the application
for Advance of Postgraduate Scholarship?
12. I am a holder of Hong Kong PhD Fellowship (HKPF). When
will I receive the fellowship? Do I need to take up any duties
in return of the fellowship?
13. Can you give me an estimate of the cost of
studying at HKU as a non-local student?
14. What is the relationship between the composition
fees and the Postgraduate Scholarship (PGS)? Can the composition
fees be offset by the scholarship?
15. When can I register for
courses? What is the coursework requirement?
| 1. What procedures do I
need to follow after receiving the offer/conditional offer
of admission? |
After receiving the offer/conditional offer of admission, please
read the letter carefully and confirm your acceptance of the offer/conditional
offer before the deadline specified, by returning the duly signed
notice of admission or statement of acceptance to the Graduate
School. If you have received a conditional offer, the confirmed
offer will be sent to you after you have satisfied all the condition(s)
specified in the conditional offer letter.
Non-local applicants with an offer/conditional offer should start
the visa application process as early as possible by following
the instructions at http://cedars.hku.hk/cedars/supportintl.aspx.
Those with a confirmed offer may apply for university accommodation.
Details are available at http://cedars.hku.hk/cedars/accommodation.aspx.
An e-mail requesting you to do registration online will normally
be sent to you via the e-mail account(s) specified in your application
form within two months prior to the date of registration. Please
complete the on-line registration procedure as instructed; otherwise
you will not be able to access information and services for research
students, including course enrollment.
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| 2.
Are photocopies of transcripts and certificates acceptable
to the University? |
Some of our conditional offer of admission
may include conditions like submission of academic documents.
Please submit officially certified certificates
and complete official transcripts of your undergraduate
and postgraduate studies. Documents which are not in English
should be accompanied by a formally certified translation in
English. If the policy of your institution is that the transcript
should remain confidential, please request your institution to
send it directly to the HKU Graduate School.
For qualifications obtained from HKU (except
HKU SPACE): Certified certificates and official transcripts are
not required but if you are a graduate, you
are requested to submit a photocopy of the transcript with your
application; if
you are a current student, you are requested to attach a printout
of your examination results from the Student
Information System (SIS) or a photocopy of your examination
result slips.
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| 3. What does a "certified
true copy" mean? |
It is a copy of a document that has been duly declared
as a true copy before a notary public (e.g. Commissioner for Oaths
at a
City District Office, Hong Kong SAR Government), or certified
by the appropriate office/department of your institution.
You can also bring the original document together with a photocopy
to the Graduate School office at
P403, Graduate House
The University of Hong Kong
Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong
Our staff will collect the photocopy of the document after checking
it against the original document.
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| 4. How can I apply for
visa application? Who will be my sponsor? |
For the purpose of coming to Hong Kong to pursue your studies,
you should apply for a student visa, and not a training/tourist
visa. Changing your status after arrival is rarely approved, which
means that your studies will be seriously disrupted. You are required
to present your student visa to the Faculty Office for verification
upon your arrival at the University.
The Centre of Development and Resources for Students (CEDARS)
of The University of Hong Kong will be the sponsor for your visa
application.
Please complete the "Application form for the Sponsorship of a
Student Visa" (enclosed in the offer-letter-package) and return
it to the Centre of Development and Resources for Students (CEDARS)
together
with the required supporting documents. For details, please refer
to the "Support
for International Students & Study Abroad".
If you have any questions regarding student visa matters, please
contact the Centre of Development and Resources for Students (CEDARS)
by e-mail: cedars@hku.hk.
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| 5. When should I submit
my visa application? Do I need to wait until I have got the
formal offer? |
PRC candidates
Once you have received your offer letter of admission (including
the conditional offer letter), you may submit your visa documentation
to the Centre of Development and Resources for Students (CEDARS).
CEDARS will then forward your visa documents to the Hong Kong Immigration
Department for processing. The HK Immigration normally takes 6
week to process your visa application.
If HKID has approved your visa application, CEDARS will pick up
the visa label and courier it to you. CEDARS will confirm the delivery
address with you before arranging for the courier service. After
receiving the visa label issued by the HK Immigration Department,
you then need to approach your local police unit to seek their
endorsement of your student visa application and you are also required
to apply for a private travel pass to HKSAR.
Overseas & Taiwan candidates Upon receipt of your admission letter, CEDARS will act as your
visa sponsor and forward your official visa application documents
to the Hong Kong Immigration Department for consideration. In 4
- 6 weeks, HK Immigration Department will inform CEDARS of your
student visa application result. If HK Immigration has approved
your student visa application, CEDARS will pick up the visa label
and courier it to you.
You may refer to the
CEDARS website for more
information. Top
| 6. How can I apply for
deferment of composition fees payment? |
Applications for deferment of payment of composition fees would
only be approved exceptionally by the Dean of Student Affairs.
If
you would like to apply for deferment of payment of composition
fees, please contact the Centre
of Development and Resources for Students (CEDARS) at (852)
2859 2305 or e-mail: cedars@hku.hk.
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| 7. I am a non-local student
and do not have a Hong Kong bank account. How should I fill
in the Personal Record Form? |
Please open a bank account once you have arrived Hong Kong. You
can then update the relevant information in the Student
Information System (“SIS”) and return the Personal
Record Form to the Graduate School upon completion.
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| 8. What should I do if
I cannot come on time to register? |
MPhil students are normally required to register on/before September
1 (or January 1). PhD students can register on the first day of
any
month.
We will be giving 7 working days' allowance for late arrival due
to visa or other unanticipated problems. Please try your best to
arrive within 7 working days from the official date of registration.
If you are not able to arrive within 7 working days from the official
date of registration, please apply for deferment of registration.
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| 9. How can I apply for
deferment of registration date? |
If you have difficulties to come on/before the registration date
shown in our Offer of Admission / Conditional Offer letter, you
are requested to submit an application for change of registration
date to the Graduate School by email, fax or letter.
Please note that deferment of registration is subject to approval
from the Department and the Faculty concerned. We shall forward
your request to the Department and the Faculty concerned for consideration.
You will be notified of the result as soon as a decision has been
made. Please be reminded that MPhil students are only allowed to
register on either September 1 or January 1 each year while PhD
students can register on the first day of any month.
Please try your best to arrive on/before the specified registration
date stated in our Offer of Admission in order not to delay your
studies.
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| 10. What is the amount
of Postgraduate Scholarship (PGS) and when will I receive it? |
The basic PGS amount for 2013-14 full-time
MPhil/PhD students is HK$13,600* per month
(w.e.f. September 1, 2013, subject to revision) and the scholarship
holder
may be required to undertake services which
carry
educational benefits for the holder with a maximum of 100 hours
in each year. A higher rate may be payable, at the discretion
of
the department in which the scholarship holder is registered. In
return, the scholarship holder may be required to work additional
hours, up to a maximum of a further 150 hours per year.
The scholarship shall be tenable on an annual basis and renewable
upon compliance with the conditions in the Regulations
Governing Postgraduate Scholarships. The maximum period of
award shall be 2 years for MPhil candidature, 3 years for 3-year
PhD candidature,
or 4 years for 4-year PhD candidature.
The scholarship will be paid by the end of each month through
your bank account. If you are a non-local student, you may apply
for
advance of postgraduate scholarship in the first month and half
of the monthly PGS will be paid to you at the beginning of
the
month, subject to approval and the time you submit the application.
The other half of the monthly stipend will be paid to you at the
end
of the
first
month.
*The value of the
scholarship shall be subject to review by the University from
time to time.
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| 11. When and how should
I submit the application for Advance of Postgraduate
Scholarship? |
Eligibility: For non-local student only.
You should submit the application form (document 478/601, obtainable
from the Graduate School office) after you have:
| (i) |
arrived in Hong Kong; |
| (ii) |
opened a bank account in Hong Kong; and |
| (iii) |
completed the registration process at the Faculty Office. |
Please also note that you need to submit your application form
together with the following documents, before the
10th of the month:
| (i) |
the Personal Record Form (document
443/203 re-amended); |
| (ii) |
a copy of your signed PGS Award Letter; and |
| (iii) |
your student visa for verification. |
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| 12. I am a holder of Hong
Kong PhD Fellowship (HKPF). When will I receive the fellowship?
Do I need to take up any duties in return of the fellowship? |
The
Hong Kong PhD Fellowship (HKPF) Scheme was established by
the Research Grants Council in
2009. The HKPF provides each awardee with a monthly scholarship
of HK$20,000 and a conference and research
related travel allowance of HK$10,000 per year for a period up
to three years. For HKPF awardees who are admitted to a 4-year
PhD programme, the University will provide a monthly Postgraduate
Scholarship (PGS) and travel allowance at the same level as the
HKPF for their fourth
year of study.
Same as holders of postgraduate scholarship, the HKPF will be paid
by the end of each month through your bank account. You are required
to comply with the Regulations
Governing Postgraduate Scholarships and you have
to undertake services which carry educational benefits for you
with a maximum of 100 hours in each year.
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| 13. Can you give me an
estimate of the cost of studying at HKU as a non-local student? |
| (i) |
Cost of Living |
| |
Overseas applicants who are offered admission have to ensure
that they are able to support themselves financially throughout
their candidature before they commence their studies. It is
very difficult to provide a precise estimate of the cost of
living because it varies from one person to another depending
on the type of accommodation selected and other factors.
Usually, the postgraduate scholarship is sufficient to cover
food, lodging, general living expenses and tuition fees.
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| (ii) |
Accommodation |
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Postgraduate residences are available on campus or nearby
and applications from overseas students are welcome. Students
should contact the postgraduate residences directly for enquiries
on vacancies and booking. Competition for places, however,
is keen. For those unable to secure a residential place on
campus, rental accommodation in the open market is also available.
Admission to the University does not provide any guarantee
of accommodation, which remains the responsibility of each
student. It is therefore in the interest of overseas students
to make definite arrangements for accommodation before arrival.
Overseas students are advised to consult the Centre of Development
and Resources for Students (CEDARS) on accommodation matters.
Information on accommodation options for non-local students
is available from the website of the Centre of Development
and Resources for Students (CEDARS): http://cedars.hku.hk/cedars/accommodation.aspx.
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| 14. What is the relationship
between the composition fees and the Postgraduate
Scholarship (PGS)? Can the
composition fees be offset by the scholarship? |
Full-time research postgraduate students awarded the PGS will
receive a stipend of HK$13,600 or above (for the
academic year 2013-14, w.e.f. September 1, 2013, subject to revision)
at the end of each month within the normative period of study.
Students should pay
the composition fees by 2 installments annually on/before the specified
deadline stated on the student debit note.
The composition fees cannot be offset by the scholarship.
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| 15. When can I register
for courses? What is the coursework requirement? |
New students may refer to the
Course Enrolment section of the Graduate School
homepage for details and information on coursework selection
and enrolment.
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