Top universities are not enough: Hong Kong urged to improve post-study opportunities for students

Hong Kong needs stronger post-study employment opportunities, affordable living arrangements, and government-backed career incentives to attract and retain international students, university leaders from the United Kingdom have said.

The university heads also stressed that the city's efforts to become a global education destination should extend beyond institutional rankings and focus on the overall experience offered to overseas students.

Their recommendations came during discussions on Hong Kong's international education ambitions and the growing influence of artificial intelligence (AI) on higher education.

Three presidents of British universities who visited Hong Kong last week for the World Class University Presidents Forum shared their views in an interview with the South China Morning Post.

The discussions took place as publicly funded universities in Hong Kong planned more than 160 international and mainland China recruitment activities during the current academic year.

The outreach activities are part of the city's broader efforts under the "Study in Hong Kong" campaign, launched in 2024 to establish the city as a global education hub.

The Hong Kong government aims to increase non-local student enrollment in full-time, locally accredited post-secondary education programs to 100,000 by the 2029-30 academic year.

This represents a 25% increase from the 79,800 non-local students enrolled in Hong Kong during the 2024-25 academic year.

While the government frequently highlights the presence of five universities among the world's top 100 institutions, British university leaders said rankings alone would not determine whether international students choose to study and build careers in the city.

Hong Kong needs more than top university rankings to attract overseas students

Shitij Kapur, president of King's College London and chair of London Higher, which represents universities and colleges across London, said the presence of highly ranked institutions was only one of several considerations for families selecting an international education destination.

He acknowledged Hong Kong's competitive advantages, including its internationally recognized universities, English-language instruction, and reputation as a safe city.

“Hong Kong now has some world-leading universities. Hong Kong to everyone is also seen as a safe place. Hong Kong teaches in English. So, all of those things, Hong Kong is very competitive,” he said.

However, Kapur emphasized that attracting international students required attention to factors beyond academic reputation and institutional performance.

“To become attractive to international students, you don’t just need great universities. You need some other factors that families use in deciding where their children should go to study.”

He identified tuition fees, living expenses, the availability of student accommodation, a welcoming environment, and opportunities to work after graduation as important considerations.

“The affordability of not just the fees but of living in the city and the ease of residence. Because after all, if a student is going to travel, they have to come and find a new place to live here,” he said. “They’re not living with their family. So, student residence and affordability are important considerations.”

Kapur also highlighted post-study employment rights as an important factor influencing students' decisions. He said international students increasingly wanted to gain professional experience in multinational companies before returning to their home countries.

“Can the students stay after their studies to be a part of the economy to gain experience? Because otherwise, you just leave with a degree. But if you can leave with a degree and experience, ideally in a multinational corporation, so that then you can go back to your country with not just a degree but a multinational experience,” he said.

Hong Kong faces competition from London for international students

The scale of international student enrollment in London also highlights the competition among global education destinations.

London has approximately 170,000 to 190,000 international students and ranked third globally in the QS Best Student Cities 2027 ranking.

Hong Kong secured the 17th position in the same ranking, which evaluates cities based on academic quality, livability, diversity, economic opportunities, and the overall student experience.

The comparison highlights the importance of factors beyond university rankings when cities compete to attract students from different parts of the world.

University leaders said Hong Kong would need to strengthen its appeal through policies that support international students during their studies and provide opportunities to remain in the city after graduation.

UK university head calls for government incentives to retain foreign graduates

Stuart Croft, vice-chancellor and president of the University of Warwick, said leading universities were already capable of attracting talented students and academics from across the world.

However, he argued that retaining this talent depended largely on government policies, employment opportunities, and incentives that encouraged international graduates to remain in the city.

“[Good universities] are really good at attracting great talent. It’s then up to governments whether they allow them to stay, whether they give them incentives to stay, because great talent can move,” he said.

Hong Kong currently operates the Immigration Arrangements for Non-local Graduates (IANG) scheme to help eligible international graduates remain in the city.

Under the arrangement, eligible degree holders can stay in Hong Kong for up to 24 months without securing a job offer beforehand.

The scheme also allows them to take up employment locally without restrictions and provides a pathway toward permanent residency.

The existing policy offers international graduates an opportunity to gain professional experience after completing their education. However, university leaders have called for broader government support to strengthen the city's ability to compete for global talent.

Hong Kong can attract international researchers through global university partnerships

Apart from recruiting international students, Hong Kong could strengthen its position as an education destination by attracting overseas academics and researchers.

Duncan Ivison, president and vice-chancellor of the University of Manchester, highlighted initiatives such as InnoHK as examples of the city's efforts to encourage international research partnerships.

He said government support for collaboration between overseas institutions and Hong Kong universities could help attract international scholars and strengthen research activities.

“A really clear signal from the Hong Kong government that they want global universities to be working with Hong Kong universities to contribute to the government’s vision,” he said.

Such partnerships could create opportunities for international institutions to work with local universities on research and innovation while contributing to Hong Kong's broader academic and economic development objectives.

University leaders flag concerns over mainland Chinese student dominance

The demographic composition of Hong Kong's international student population is another factor that university leaders believe requires attention.

Students from mainland China account for more than 70% of non-local undergraduate enrollment in the city.

Kapur warned that an overwhelming concentration of students from a single region could affect how prospective applicants from other countries perceive Hong Kong as an international education destination.

He said a diverse student population was important for establishing the city's global identity and encouraging applications from a wider range of countries.

“If you have a dominant customer of one profile, in some sense, it takes away from looking international. Because to the outsiders, it seems that this is a place only for people from mainland China,” he said.

His remarks highlighted the importance of diversifying international student recruitment rather than relying heavily on applicants from one geographical region.

Increasing representation from different countries could also strengthen cross-cultural interactions and provide students with a more internationally diverse campus environment.

AI pushes universities to rethink traditional teaching and assessment methods

Apart from international student recruitment, the British university leaders discussed how artificial intelligence is changing higher education and the traditional approach to teaching and assessment.

Kapur rejected concerns that AI was necessarily reducing the value of university education. Instead, he said institutions needed to reconsider what learning means and how students demonstrate their knowledge and abilities.

He argued that universities should view AI as a cognitive and analytical partner rather than focus primarily on preventing students from using the technology to cheat.

“AI turns it upside down. So, we can’t just worry about our students going to use AI to cheat because that would be missing the point,” he said.

According to Kapur, the growing use of AI requires universities to move away from conventional teaching structures centered on lectures, workshops, seminars, and individual essay assignments.

He suggested that classes could increasingly begin with practical problems that students must investigate and solve through collaborative learning.

“Rather than a simple lecture and after that a workshop and a seminar and an essay, what it may now mean is that in fact the class begins with the problem.”

Kapur said students should spend more time working in teams, developing solutions, and presenting their findings rather than relying primarily on conventional written assignments.

He also called for changes in university assessment methods to place greater emphasis on practical skills, teamwork, and the ability to apply knowledge.

“The mode of assessment changes from marking an essay to actually presentations as a group. So, more studios, more labs. More presentations, more working in teams, because those will be the qualities that will be needed when they leave.”

The proposed approach would give students more opportunities to develop communication, collaboration, analytical thinking, and problem-solving abilities.

It would also encourage universities to introduce more practical learning environments, including laboratories and collaborative studios, where students can work on real-world challenges.

Universities must train students to solve real-world problems, says Warwick president

Croft also stressed that artificial intelligence could not replace the role of universities in preparing future leaders and professionals.

He said higher education institutions needed to move beyond traditional approaches to delivering information and focus on developing students' ability to address practical challenges.

According to him, universities should strengthen their connections with businesses and industries by using laboratories and other practical learning facilities to work on specific corporate problems.

“We’re not just giving education, we’re not just giving information, we’re training people to be leaders in different fields,” he added.

The comments underline the need for universities to adapt their teaching methods as AI becomes more widely used across industries.

The university leaders' recommendations point to two major challenges for Hong Kong's higher education ambitions: attracting international students through affordable education and stronger post-study employment opportunities, and preparing graduates with skills suited to an increasingly AI-driven economy.