UQ Program: Bachelor of Business Management/Commerce
In the past, I have done three different exchanges and Hong Kong was certainly the best. As a finance and international business major, Hong Kong was an ideal location as it nests an outstanding commerce sector.
There is always something to do in Hong Kong for every type of person. Whether you are searching for food, shopping, bars, clubs, cafes, and sights to see, Hong Kong will always deliver. You can just about get off at any metro stop and find something to do.
Orientation is well planned out at CUHK. There is a welcoming dinner followed by and after party and a day tour of Hong Kong you must attend.
Enrolling into class at CUHK is fairly troublesome. The majority of the students went back and forth numerous times to the abroad office to sort out their class schedules. So make sure you have a few back up subjects you would like to take.
The CUHK campus is situated in New Territories, it is literally on a mountain. It will take getting use to at first as it’s not the most convenient of all locations. It’s great exercise walking around campus as there are many hills and staircases, but most of the students take the school bus. The buses run about every 15-20 mins, and more frequently during class times. Once you figure out how to time the buses then it’s not that bad. Once you get to the metro station everything is quick and straight forward.
You will not fall short on the night life in Hong Kong. There are a lot of international organisations that will organise events for you to meet students at CUHK and other universities in Hong Kong. There will always be a party at Lan Kwai Fong (central) or Wan Chai. Lan Kwai Fong holds clubs, bars, restaurants, and shopping. Wan Chai is mainly pubs and bars. The main attraction in Wan Chai is a bar called ‘Carnegies’ on a Tuesday and Wednesday night.
You should also check out ‘Ozone’, it has just recently opened and it is currently the highest bar in the world.
For street food, Tai Po Market and the Mong Kok area is the place to be. You will definitely hear about a place called ‘Mr Wong’s’. It’s the place for all the exchange students to go. You do not need to order and he’ll just bring out food for you. Best of all, he also provides unlimited beer all for 50 HKD. This place is always busy. For high end dining, there are many restaurants in SOHO, next to central.
Shoppers prepare to be amazed. The shopping centres are huge, Particularly Harbour City. I still haven’t managed to go through it all. Shatin mall is the largest mall in New Territories and is close to CUHK. If malls aren’t your thing, then causeway bay and central have lots of stores and boutiques.
And finally, it’s easy to travel around Asia from Hong Kong. It is close to just about everything. Weekend trips to China were definitely something that everyone did as the Chinese border is only 5 metro stops away from the University. During breaks, luxury islands in Thailand and the Philippines is a must do. They have great weather almost all year round.
I definitely encourage you to exchange in Hong Kong. It gave a perfect end to my 3 semesters of exchange and I couldn’t be happier.