News & Stories

Loyalty is a virtue quietly forged through dedication. This year, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST)’s Long Service Awards celebrates this very spirit by honoring 158 colleagues who have served for 20 years or more. Notably, HKUST is presenting its inaugural 35-Year Awards, recognizing colleagues whose 35 years of service—a milestone predating the University’s founding—underscores the deep-rooted commitment within our community. Join us to meet three of the remarkable honorees who have helped shape HKUST into the institution it is today.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has risen three places to 44th in the QS World University Rankings 2026, reinforcing its dedication to excellence in teaching, research, and global education while championing diversity and innovation. This year’s rankings evaluated 1,500+ institutions across 106 locations —the most extensive evaluation to date. HKUST demonstrated outstanding performance in academic reputation, research output, and internationalization, with significant progress in education and employability metrics.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) ranked 19th globally in the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2025, retaining its position as Hong Kong and Mainland China’s top institution for the second consecutive year.  The rankings, which assessed 2,500 universities, recognize institutions advancing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). HKUST excelled in SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG 15 (Life on Land), reflecting its leadership in innovating resilient infrastructure and industries, promoting urban sustainability and promoting terrestrial ecosystem conservation. 

Prof. SONG Xueyang, Assistant Professor of the Department of Physics at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), has been awarded the prestigious 2025 Croucher Tak Wah Mak Innovation Award for her groundbreaking research in theoretical condensed matter physics. Her research promises to revolutionize energy-efficient technologies by designing materials with unprecedented control over electricity and heat. Prof. Song will receive HKD 5 million in funding from the Croucher Foundation to support her future research. The “Croucher Tak Wah Mak Innovation Award”, one of the Croucher Foundation's top honors, recognizes Hong Kong's brightest young scientific minds poised to make significant breakthroughs. Recipients are selected for their distinguished doctoral work, internationally competitive research, and high-impact contributions to their fields.

Prof. Fugee TSUNG, Chair Professor of Industrial Engineering and Decision Analytics at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and Chair Professor of Data Science & Analytics Thrust and Computational Media & Arts Thrust at HKUST (Guangzhou), has been honored with the 2025 Shewhart Medal by the American Society for Quality (ASQ). Widely regarded as the “Nobel Prize in the quality field,” this accolade recognizes Prof. Tsung’s transformative contributions to statistical process control, industrial quality improvement, and academic leadership. He joins an elite group of Chinese scholars to receive this award since its inception in 1948.

What does it take to be first? Being first isn't just a title—it’s in our DNA. From developing Hong Kong's first AI foundation model to building a net-zero carbon campus, HKUST turns "firsts" into a legacy of impact.

Scientists from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) are among the researchers worldwide honored with the 2025 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics, often referred to as the "Oscars of Science." This prestigious recognition was presented to the A Toroidal LHC ApparatuS (ATLAS) Collaboration at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) for its groundbreaking studies on high-energy collisions at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). This recognition highlights a decade of dedicated research and innovation by the HKUST researchers, who have contributed significantly to the ATLAS Collaboration's achievements, including the discovery of the Higgs boson, commonly known as the "God Particle", and searches for new physics beyond the Standard Model of Particle Physics.

What made 2024 unforgettable at HKUST? From groundbreaking research to memorable campus moments, we've wrapped it all into one highlight reel!