HKUST Annual Report 2024-2025

17 DELIVERING MULTICULTURAL MINDS WITH MULTIDIMENSIONAL TALENTS Our belief in shaping the future of education yielded remarkable results in 2024-25. Driven by our agile approach to programs and student development, non-local undergraduate applications for 2025-26 soared to a record high of nearly 20,000. This figure, a 40% year-on-year surge, meant that approximately 800 available places were in greater demand than ever before. Among UGC-funded institutions, HKUST has the highest proportion of international undergraduate students. We intensified our global recruitment—through expanded overseas tours, information sessions, and school counselor outreach—to attract the top talent that draws other bright minds and leading faculty. This strategy successfully drew applications from over 85 countries and regions, spanning from Europe and Southeast Asia to Central Asia, the Middle East, and Mongolia. HKUST saw burgeoning interest from high-flyers worldwide in 2024-25. Our proven model of whole- person and full-potential development—which produces highly employable, future-ready graduates— resonates strongly with top students seeking a dynamic, global community. We also set further records with our HKUST Information Day, which attracted 55,000 students, families, and teachers from Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area. Participants gained insights into our programs, met our faculty, and experienced our stunning campus firsthand. Postgraduate recruitment saw similar success. Applications for research and taught programs rose by 23% and 15% respectively for Fall 2025-26. In response to the evolving academic landscape, we reaffirmed our commitment to a world-class learning environment by launching the Global Talent Scholarship, now extended to include not only Harvard University students but other outstanding overseas candidates wishing to continue their studies at HKUST. In 2024-25, our postgraduate community included non-local students from 61 countries and regions, who made up 80% of our 8,000-plus postgraduate enrolment.