Concept
The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is the first public research university in Hong Kong. The Chinese University of Hong Kong was founded as a federation of three existing colleges – Chung Chi College, New Asia College and United College – the oldest of which was founded in 1949.. And Chung Chi College was a consolidation of thirteen Christian universities in China before the change of regime in 1949. These thirteen Christian universities include the Zhejiang University in Hangzhou established in 1845, St. John's University in Shanghai established in 1879 (which was 'Harvard' then in China), Lingnan University in Guangzhou established in 1888 (alma Mater of Sun Yat-sen), and the then highly prestigious Yenching University established in 1919. The Chinese University of Hong Kong, therefore, holds the deepest historical roots, positioning CUHK as the most historically rich institution of higher education in Hong Kong. CUHK is now organized into nine constituent colleges and eight academic faculties, and remains the only collegiate university in the territory. The university operates in both English and Chinese, although classes in most colleges are taught in English. Four Nobel laureates are associated with the university, and it is the only tertiary institution in Hong Kong with recipients of the Nobel Prize, Turing Award, Fields Medal and Veblen Prize sitting as faculty in residence. The university was formed in 1963 as a federation of three existing colleges. The first of these, New Asia College, was established in 1949 by anti-Communist Confucian scholars from Mainland China amid the revolution there. Among the founders were Ch'ien Mu, Tang Junyi, and Tchang Pi-kai. Curriculum focused particularly on Chinese heritage and social concerns. The early years of this school were tumultuous, with the campus relocating several times between rented premises around Kowloon. Academics there were often self-exiled from the mainland and they struggled financially, with students sometimes sleeping on rooftops and teachers foregoing pay to sustain the college.
