The Graduate Commons, which opened in February 2015, is proving a popular location for postgraduate students across all schools to advance their perspectives, exchange research ideas and develop collaborative projects. The Commons, located on the fifth floor of the main Academic Building, provides a hub of creation for postgraduates to meet together in an informal setting. It is also fully furnished with the latest audio-visual devices.

 

Associate Dean of Engineering (Research and Graduate Studies) Prof King Lun Yeung said he was delighted that postgraduate students now had such a facility available to them for interdisciplinary sharing. “The area serves as solid physical support to the holistic educational experience we are committed to providing for our students,” he said. The establishment of the Commons would help a collaborative and multidisciplinary environment to grow, which would assist students in developing all-round perspectives, he added.

 

Vice-President for Research and Graduate Studies Prof Joseph Lee said that the Commons would further assist the University’s drive to connect up postgraduate students.

 

Among the guests invited to the opening ceremony was Ms Chelsia Lau, Chief Designer, Shanghai Strategic Concepts Group at Ford Motor Company. Senior University administrators and HKUST Jockey Club Institute for Advanced Study professors also attended. At the event, Ms Lau spoke on trends and challenges for the automobile industry and expectations for future employees.

 

Engineering innovation on show at the opening included computer graphics and electronic music compositions by two Computer Science and Engineering PhD students and a hand-gesture device by a Technology Leadership and Entrepreneurship Program MPhil student.