Hong Kong Metropolitan University (HKMU) welcomes the HK$100 million start-up fund earmarked in the 2024-25 Budget to support self-financing, post-secondary institutions in forming an Alliance of Universities in Applied Sciences (UAS) for joint publicity and promotion of vocational and professional education and training (VPET), with a view to enhancing the status of VPET among parents, students and society in general.

HKMU President Prof. Paul Lam Kwan-sing welcomed the commitment of the HKSAR Government to the development of UAS. “The promotion of UAS development in Hong Kong will be a good opportunity for the education sector, parents, students, and the community at large to better understand the importance of UAS,” he said.

He added that the alliance would enable member institutions to work together to create a clearer, more focused and feasible development path, which would benefit the development of UAS in Hong Kong in the long run. He said HKMU will devote its utmost efforts to enhancing the social status of vocational and professional education and training and to promoting the popularity of UAS to provide students with diversified paths for further education and career development, and to nurture outstanding talent for Hong Kong.