Hkust

southcamp8 · 05-09-2007, 12:18 PM

Hi everyone.

I am very interested in getting my master degree in HKUST. I am particularly interested in their graduate math program. Little about myself: I am Russian, currently getting my Bachelor degree in Finance and Math at BSU, USA. I fluently speak russian and english, and just started learning mandarin. I am involved in a lot of on campus activities, while maintaining a high GPA.

I have a lot of questions, but I will start with few:

1. I know, it is very competitive, however, I heard that it would be easier to get in for international student with diverse background. Does anyone know any info about the admission.

2. Do I need to take any standardized test, like GMAT, GRE, SAT etc?

3. How much money would I need besides tuition, if I live on campus? (per month, semi-annually??)

4. Should I get laptop here or in HK?

5. What difficulties can I run into during my first year? (culture, tradition, language, etc?)

I consider my self a cosmopolitan person and very open minded. I grew up in a big city (no as big as HK thou -). However, really scared moving (if I get in of course.)

geo-seb · 05-09-2007, 05:28 PM

1. In general every applicant is treated the same. The main exception is if you can find a senior professor who is willing to support your application. If you are going for a research degree (M.Phil.), then admission is extremely competitive, because all research students get a monthly studentship of approx. 12000 HK$. Admission for other degrees is easier as long as your GPA is acceptable.

2. Usually not necessary, but it is possible that some departments have specific requirements.

3. Depends on your life style. If you live in a hostel, usually eat in the canteens on campus, and don't go out for shopping / drinking / party all the time, then 6000 HK$ / month should be ok.

4. Not sure about this.

5. Communication won't be a problem on campus and the central areas. Mandarin is still quite useless here, because most native Hong Kongers prefer speaking Cantonese and English (in fact most prefer speaking Cantonese and use English only if they absolutely have to). So learning a bit Cantonese is a good idea.

southcamp8 · 05-09-2007, 11:49 PM

Thx for the reply.

Do you know, if there is any work experience required for the MS. in math? I know, that if want to pursue MBA, I would need about three years of work experience. However, I heard that for more science oriented degrees (math, phys., bio) work experience is not necessary.