The Department has a vibrant research student community, with students undertaking PhD and MPhil studies in a range of areas that fit closely with the main research clusters of the Department. Details of current student projects can be found at the "Current Postgraduate Research" page.

Students work with a Principal Supervisor, as well as a secondary Co-Supervisor. In addition, our Research Students’ Coordinator oversees their general wellbeing and study experience.

To equip our students with the critical capabilities and research skills to conduct independent research, we organize workshops on research methodology and research writing, and seminars for students to present their research findings and enhance communication skills in an academic setting. Eminent scholars are also invited to provide advice on specific research topics and on students’ work. Students are thus able to benefit from a wide range of contact with researchers and scholars in their field. In addition, students are encouraged to join one of the Faculty's FNRA (Faculty Niche Research Area) subgroups to enhance their experience of participating in an interdisciplinary research group.

Funding

The majority of students are funded by a UGC Research Studentship, or by the prestigious Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme. We also welcome self-funded students, for example those in receipt of overseas grants.

In addition to this regular funding, UGC-funded students can enjoy several research allowances offered by the University for the purpose of conference attendance, overseas attachments, thesis editing, and so on. On top of these, the Department provides up to HKD 30,000 over the course of each student’s study for the purposes of conference travel and attendance (where a paper is being presented), or for overseas attachments. As students are also required to publish during their period of study, they are entitled to the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences funding of HKD 5,000 for external editing of draft publications prior to submission. Strong publications are nominated for the Faculty’s Outstanding Paper Incentive Scheme. Students also enjoy a one-off allowance of HKD 6,000 for external proofreading of their thesis draft prior to submission.