College of Science (CSCI) formally signed a Collaborative Framework Agreement with The Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education (HKAGE) on 16 May to launch the STEAM Research Mentorship Scheme. Through this two-year scheme, CityUHK professors and research staff will serve as research mentors, providing structured, step-by-step professional training to guide HKAGE student members in their research endeavours—together nurturing research and innovation talent with the capacity to compete on an international level.
Professor Xin Wang, Dean of CSCI pointed out that CSCI has always been committed to advancing cutting-edge research and talent development. "Through this scheme, we aim to provide gifted students with a comprehensive research training pathway from foundational to advanced levels. This will enable them to engage in authentic scientific research at an early stage during their secondary school years. We believe this partnership will nurture a new generation of competitive science and technology innovation talents for Hong Kong."
Dr. Martin Szeto, Executive Director of the HKAGE, expressed great enthusiasm for the collaboration, “Partnering with the College of Science, CityUHK marks an important milestone for HKAGE’s STEAM education. By combining CityUHK’s world-class research resources with the HKAGE’s experience in nurturing gifted students, we can effectively unlock their potential in research area. This will cultivate them into the backbone of Hong Kong’s future scientific and innovation development, supporting Hong Kong’s growth into a world-class innovation hub.
In the presence of distinguished guests and gifted students, both parties officially signed the Collaborative Framework Agreement. Following the signing ceremony, CityUHK’s Professor Condon Lau, Professor Wing Cheong Lo and Professor Alice Hu each delivered a presentation on the theme of artificial intelligence, sharing with the gifted students how AI currently utilised to support scientific research and elaborating on details of the Scheme. The gifted students also took the opportunity to seek advice from the experts on the spot, gaining insight into the difficulties and challenges faced in practical research work.
The STEAM Research Mentorship Scheme is divided into four stages, providing a progression from foundational concepts to advanced research, and offering courses and learning activities for gifted students across two academic years:
Stage 1: Research Expert Talks
CityUHK professors share insights on scientific research and explain the programme’s content, research topics and methodologies.
Stage 2: Research Taster Workshops
Selected students will participate in a one-week summer programme at CityUHK to learn about the AI applications. CityUHK researchers will select students to progress to the next stage based on their in-class performance, report writing, presentations and assessment results.
Stage 3: Advanced Learning and Research Programme
Ten selected student members will be divided into two research groups to take part in one-year long CityUHK’s research activities. Under the guidance of CityUHK researchers, the groups will undertake research projects, conduct experiments and analyse data. Both groups are required to hold regular meetings to report on research progress, with goals including participating in scientific research competitions, publishing in scientific journals or conference papers, and completing patent applications.
Stage 4: Student–Faculty Mentorships
Students who demonstrate outstanding performance in the previous stage will enter the final stage, where they will be invited by CityUHK professors to join research teams and engage in world-class scientific research. Student members will participate in postgraduate-level professional training and, under the guidance of professors, publish papers in leading international scientific journals, attend international scientific conferences, or achieve breakthrough in patent application.