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EDUCATION

Undergraduate enrolment in September, 1980, was: arts 1,053; business administration 912; science 1,248; and social science 1,231. In addition, 638 students were enrolled in graduate programmes and 98 students and scholars from overseas attended the International Asian Studies Programme.

The university stopped conducting its own matriculation examination in 1979. Students who wish to enter the university must gain Grade E or above in Chinese, English and three other subjects in the Hong Kong Higher Level Examination conducted by the Hong Kong Examinations Authority. Some 5,000 students fulfilled the entrance requirements in 1980. Of these, 1,185 were admitted for the 1980-1 academic year.

The university's four faculties - arts, business administration, science, and social science - offer a wide range of four-year programmes leading to Bachelor degrees. The graduate school offers courses of advanced studies and research, through 20 divisions, leading to the degrees of Doctor of Philosophy in Humanities and Science; Master of Philosophy in Humanities, Science or Social Science; and Master of Business Administration, Divinity, Arts, Science, or Social Work. The School of Education, which aims at providing pro- fessional training for graduates of approved universities to serve and teach in local secondary schools, offers courses leading to the Diploma in Education or the degree of Master of Arts in Education.

A total of 1,196 students graduated from the university in 1980. They included 56 Masters of Philosophy, 57 Masters of Business Administration, four Masters of Arts (Education), one Master of Divinity, two Masters of Social Work, 256 Bachelors of Arts, 235 Bachelors of Business Administration, 267 Bachelors of Science and 318 Bachelors of Social Science. Thirty-seven of the Masters of Business Administration graduates belonged to the first graduating class of the three-year part-time MBA programme, which was established with generous grants from local business leaders.

The Department of Extramural Studies offered more than 1,000 general, certificate, correspondence and radio courses in many subjects. Most courses are conducted in Cantonese or Mandarin. The Department launched five courses by newspaper in 1980 in collaboration with six leading Chinese and English newspapers. The overall enrolment was 31,112.

The library system comprises the university library and three branch libraries at the colleges. Library holdings in 1980 were: 352,412 volumes in Oriental languages; 322,618 volumes in Western languages; and 4,559 current periodical titles.

Building projects completed during the year included an academic building, a building for the estates and maintenance activities, and two blocks of staff residences. The university's multi-purpose auditorium was almost completed while a sports centre and two additional blocks of staff residences were under construction.

During 1980, considerable progress was made towards preparing the Faculty of Medicine for the admission of its first students in 1981. A Medical Admissions Committee was set up under the Chairmanship of a University Council member to advise on all policy matters concerning the admission of medical students. The basic medical sciences building was nearing completion at the end of the year and construction work began on the hospital at Sha Tin (to be named the Prince of Wales Hospital), which will serve as the teaching hospital for the faculty. Progress was also seen in staff recruitment and a number of proleptic appointments of Chairprofessors were made. Various donations were received for establish- ing a research fund, acquiring books for the library and teaching aids, and providing bursaries, scholarships and prizes.