HKU holds Entrance Scholarships Award Ceremony for 2025-26
HONG KONG, May 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The University of Hong Kong (HKU) recently held the HKU Entrance Scholarships Award Ceremony to recognise the outstanding academic and non-academic achievements of students admitted to the University in the 2025-26 academic year.
Over 700 student awardees, parents, and guests attended the ceremony, which was officiated by Professor Xiang Zhang, President and Vice-Chancellor of HKU. In his welcoming remark, Professor Zhang said that the University was establishing a new AI Hub initiative to fundamentally transform the way of teaching with the integration of AI. Noting that AI development might drastically redefine education and certain professions within the next decade, he encourages students to be creative and equip themselves as future pioneers to help drive the transformation.
Benefactors of the 'Hon Ping Entrance Scholarship for Nigerian Students,' 'Jardine HKU Scholarship,' 'Lee Shau Kee Top Athletes Scholarships,' 'QRT-HKU Scholarship,' 'Rosita King Ho Scholarship,' 'The Hong Kong Jockey Club Chairman's Scholarship,' and 'The Hong Kong Jockey Club Striding On Scholarship,' as well as Professor Jay Siegel, Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) at HKU, and Professor Ian Holliday, Registrar at HKU, were among the guests of honour who presented awards to the students.
Representatives from 11 Consulates-General, including Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, Turkey, Thailand, and Vietnam, attended the event to extend their warm wishes to the student awardees. Representatives from over 30 local secondary schools were also present to celebrate with their former students.
The students awarded have excelled in a variety of fields. They include 55 President's Scholars. Other scholarships awarded include 'The Hong Kong Jockey Club Chairman's Scholarship,' for students with exceptional academic achievements; the 'Lee Shau Kee Top Athletes Scholarship,' for outstanding young athletes admitted to HKU through the 'Top Athletes Direct Admission Scheme'; and the 'Belt and Road Scholarship,' which recognises students coming from Belt and Road countries.
In addition to expressing their happiness at receiving the scholarships, the awardees also look forward to their university life and future career endeavours.
João Davi de Morais, recipient of the HKU Scholarship for Future Leaders from the Bachelor of Arts in Humanities and Digital Technologies programme, emphasised the transformative impact of the scholarship in enabling him to become the first person in his community to pursue international higher education. Raised in Brazil's seventh-largest vulnerable community, João is a strong advocate for education for underprivileged youth. He presented his journalism work on Brazilian early childhood education at the 80th United Nations General Assembly, where he met the Brazilian Minister of Education and contributed to the announcement of new daycare centres in his home state. João hoped his story would inspire low-income youth to pursue education as a path beyond social barriers, and he remains committed to creating positive change in education as a young leader.
Awarded the HKU Undergraduate Entrance Scholarship for President's Scholars and currently pursuing the Bachelor of Engineering Elite Programme, Aryan Sokhiya recounted his high school project developing and pitching a gamified platform to address plastic litter. This experience inspired him to see engineering as a discipline that can transform ideas into scalable, real-world impact by connecting people, ideas, and purpose. Aryan expressed his appreciation for HKU's interdisciplinary approach to tackling technological challenges and thanked the scholarship for providing not only financial support but also opportunities for intentional personal growth.
As a recipient of the Lee Shau Kee Top Athletes Scholarship and a long-jump athlete representing Hong Kong at the 15th National Games of China and the Asian Athletics Championships, Jia Wai Yin Tiffany is now pursuing the Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences. Tiffany shared her unique educational journey as a student-athlete. She credited the perseverance and resilience developed through sports for her academic success and expressed deep gratitude to the University and scholarship for providing flexibility, guidance, and support as she continues to pursue excellence in both athletics and academics.
Naziba Sayem, recipient of the Belt and Road Scholarship from Bangladesh and a Bachelor of Science student, highlighted her mother's resilience in battling a rare autoimmune disease as the inspiration behind her pursuit of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology at HKU. Despite financial constraints, her parents' unwavering support for her education encouraged Naziba to remain ambitious and hopeful. As a Belt and Road Scholar, she is proud to represent her country and the spirit of the initiative. Naziba hopes to leverage her education at HKU to contribute to research in Bangladesh and inspire others to overcome challenges, pursue their dreams, and further the values of global cooperation.
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