r/HKUST

Pls let me know your % as well. Just want to know so that I can decide on my applications

As an international student whose planning to apply to HKUST, I can only attend if there is a full scholarship available for all 4 years, I will apply with 4 A-Levels and obviously some relevant EC’s. What scholarships will i be eligible for? Is there one which covers 4 year’s tuition? and possibly a stipend? Or does HKUST not have that at all?

I messed up badly and got really late due to some personal/family issues. My application process is all over the place.

Is there a chance I could get a full tuition scholarship (as that will be the only way I could attend it)

I have 4A*s in Alevel btw and some decent ECs, (national olympiad, ran a school club, research etc.)

Applying for computing

Like NYU and NYU Abu-Dhabi are both respected globally, is this also the case for these 2 universities. Will the GZ be a red flag in the eyes of employers ?

Hello. I got a full tuition scholarship at HKUST. However, I also got offers from UCL and Melbourne University but without scholarship, so the cost of attending is exorbitant. Are HK degrees recognized internationally? I want to do my masters in the US/UK and then intend to return back to my home country in Africa. Are there students who went to HKUST for the bachelors and subsequently went to a better British or American school for their masters ?

Basically gng, I recently heard about HKUST's - BBA Global Business and I was mainly locked in for ivies preparations but my parents want me to have few options in india and south asia so I came across HKUST.

I would need at least 50% scholarship to attend but if I get this bba then, willing to take a loan too for the degree + are the salary after this bba GBUS actually that crazy or just hyped up ?

Desired Major: Business/finance/sociology + AI
Demographics: Indian male, middle class, IBDP School
Hooks: None
Rigor: Maths AI HL, Business Management HL and Chemistry HL
SL Subjects - English Language and Literature, French B and Physics

GPA (biggest problem) -
9th grade - 4/4 - 4 A stars, rest all A's (FLE) - IGCSE
10th grade - 3.92/4 - 2 A stars, 4 A's and 1 B (FLE) - IGCSE
11th grade - 3.2/4 (32/45) - Ik gng i messed up again
12th grade - I expect to score 40+/45 predicted (got tutors and all) and the teachers understood why my grades were so low and am scoring accordingly in 12th grade.

Extracurricular Activities

1. Independent Researcher

Sole-author of 4+ studies on AI, labor markets, and institutional decision-making; developed original governance frameworks and quantitative indices, open-sourced research code, presented findings publicly, and earned acceptance to Krea University's RSFE Finance Track.

I hope to get at least one published in a journal since my prof directly helped me out.

2. Research Assistant – Oxford Saïd Business School

Conducted a qualitative literature review on public vs private markets and corporate delisting; analysed 30+ academic papers, developed a structured delisting table constituting of 400+ companies, and synthesised findings for regulatory application. The report was submitted to the Financial Reporting Council; worked directly under faculty guidance.

3. AI Recruiting Intern

First high-school intern at a U.S. recruiting firm; sourced and screened 75+ candidates, advanced 5 finalists to leadership, introduced AI-powered recruiting workflows, and helped expand sourcing capacity through automation, process design, and talent intelligence research.

4. CFO – MUN Logistics Business

Directed operations for a conference supply venture serving 16 MUNs; managed end-to-end procurement, budgeting, and client acquisition, generating ₹7,00,000 revenue at ~24% margins; built scalable vendor and fulfilment systems; implemented advance payment protocols after contract failure as a means to improve financial risk control.

5. MUN Secretariat Leadership

Led operations across 9 MUN conferences (1100+ delegates), serving in senior secretariat roles including Deputy Secretary General (3x), Head of Outreach, and Financial Advisor; managed 80+ member secretariats, built SOP-driven hiring systems reducing recruitment time by 33%, secured partnerships (UNHCR, G20, NITI Aayog), and generated ₹10.9L revenue with ₹3.16L profit; resolved high team attrition through structural engagement systems.

6. MUN Integrity Verification Organization

International Affairs Coordinator for a global initiative verifying chair/vice-chair credentials across 50 conferences; led 6 country heads, built verification workflows using centralized databases and network validation, and supported organizing committees in detecting fraudulent applications.

7. HR Intern – (Mental Health NGO)

Conducted 35+ structured interviews and redesigned the recruitment pipeline using AI transcription and parallel processing; reduced time-per-hire by 50% and recruited 26+ interns, significantly increasing organisational capacity.

8. MUN Delegating & Chairing

Participated in 33 conferences (19 delegate, 13 chair/vice-chair roles) including prestigious conferences such as Oxford and Harvard MUN; secured awards in 15/19 conferences as a delegate; engaged in high-level committees alongside university participants in 7 MUN’s, strengthening negotiation, policy analysis, and public speaking.

9. Paid Independent Adjudicator – IPDC 2026

Selected adjudicator for the 7th International Parliamentary Debate Competition; evaluated competitive debate rounds and research motions; compensated per round(15$)

10. XXXXX (NGO Co-founder) (Can't name it)

Founded a small-scale nutrition initiative addressing protein deficiency in government school students; funded through MUN profits and distributed supplements to 30+ students; developed a replicable low-cost intervention model.

Awards/Honours

1. Ascend Berkeley Stock Pitch Competition – Grand Finalist & India Champion

Level: International

Grand Finalist (Top 5/55+, 8.93%); Champion – India Team; led team in fintech stock analysis using Monte Carlo simulation and financial modelling

2.Grand Delegate & Best Delegate (DMUN USA)

Level: International

Grand Delegate (1/1200+, 0.08%) and Best Delegate (1/140, 0.71%) in WTO Committee; highest overall distinction at international conference; represented South Sudan

3. National Economics Olympiad – Finalist (SRCC)

Level: National

Finalist (127/2600+, 4.88%); self-studied economics using only competition resources with no prior background

4. Singapore & Asian Schools Math Olympiad (SASMO) – Gold Award

Level: International

Global Rank 25; National Rank 10 (Grade 11); Gold Award (Top 8%); School Rank 1 in rigorous international mathematics competition.

More deets

Submitted my delisting paper, which was an extension of my work as a Research Assistant under the Oxford professor to Research Symposium on Finance and Economics 2026 (Accepted) and the 18th Bulletin of Monetary Economics and Banking Conference (Accepted here too)

Delisting Paper accepted to International Conference on Applied Economics and Business 2026.

Acceptance into non-trivial partner programmes - Leaf’s summer cohort - 10% acceptance rate from thousands of applicants with full tuition fee waiver.

I am an ap student who wants to go into hku business school, but I am unsure of what major I should choose from, and so I am looking for some advice.

Here are my stats (skip if you want to)

SAT: 1560

IELTS: 8.5

Hugeo, Precal, Physics I: 5

BC, Bio, Stats, Macro, Micro: all expected 5's (will update in a few weeks)

gpa 3.8 ish unweighted

Honorable Mention (2nd place) in committee at thai MUN (international)

2nd place for wsi nfte (international out of 2839 participants)

Vice president for a conservation club

Organized a fund raiser and donated 5000 baht and planted trees with a orgnaization under a university

I know that my stats arent as jacked as many of the applicants, but I think I might be able to get in. I am just deciding between Qfin and Fin&Becon. For Qfin, I know that it is pretty prestigous and it might pave the path to some very stable high paying jobs. But for that same reason there is a quota of only 30 students, and half of which are hk locals, effectively leaving me with 15 spots, which, after considering my stats, gives me a feeling that my chances of getting into that major is pretty slim. Plus I heard that a lot of quant dont have a degree in qfin specifically but instead a degree in math or com sci because the job has very little to do with actual finance but rather math and computers. I am a B+ to A- calc student at best and I am completely clueless when it comes to programming, which makes me further doubt this option.

On the other hand is Fin&BEcon. From my research I know its broader and is more traditional. But at the same time it might not lead to a high paying job right away, and honestly I am really worried about the future of fin&econ because of AI. Furthermore the major also gives me a feeling that it will require a lot of networking, and I am a little shy when it comes to socializing, or rather that I am not shy but I just don't know how to socialize.

For further information, I am definetly going to try to get a master's degree and I am open to doing dual degree programs. Among these two majors which one should I choose? Should I choose another major? Based on my Stats is a scholarship even possible (mainland chinese btw please dont hate on me)

since a new ug application cycle is starting, i want to share this in case someone might find this useful.

- 1530 sat, 8.0 ielts

- 3 APs 5 (HuG Calc AB Phys 1)

- 3.71 GPA unweighted

- decent essay & ECs (relevent clubs & leadership roles & community service)
applied to energy & environmental engineering (and a few related majors) early round (17 nov)

no update ever since, no interview. i got my result late june

i didn't expect any scholarship nor getting rejected from all my choices

my point is your admission chance varies by cycle and even major, and seemingly OK stats does not guarantee admission, let alone scholarship

anyways congratulate to everyone who got in this year!

https://preview.redd.it/9lsniom7ym9h1.png?width=577&format=png&auto=webp&s=d05193312eb54d7963ef1afbd7235f019f1af53a

hi! so im an international student in highschool from thailand and my dream school is hkust. im an upcoming senior so i might update these stats so let me know if theres anything to improve! :)

background: asian / female / middle class / probably need to apply for aid and scholarship

intended majors: business management or marketing

sat: 1520

ielts : 8.0

gpa : 3.75

aps : predicted macro (4) stats (3) *planning to take 2 more during my senior year

extracurricular activities

* tutor & community service (30+ hours)
* president of two active clubs in school
* class representative
* operating a small business profiting over 10k hkd (grade 10-present)
* part-time at familys small business (grade 9–present)
* 2 internships (one as event operations & one as marketing)

competition/awards

actively participated in mun/debate, business case competitions, startup pitching, and public speaking competitions, earning multiple awards

am i also able to apply for scholarship with these stats? i need to hear everyone’s opinions or advices because i think im cooked 💀😭