Newsletter No. 119

4,207 Degrees Conferred at 53rd Congregation The University Mall swarmed with students, parents, and guests Above: The police band playing outside the Benjamin Franklin Centre Below: Procession members marching towards the congregation venue The University's 53rd congregation for the conferment o f degrees t o ok place on Thursday, 11th December 1997 at the University Mall. Presiding at the ceremony was Dr. the Honourable Anson Chan, Chancellor of the University and Acting Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Of the 4,203 degrees awarded that morning, 72 were PhDs, five were MDs, 604 were master's degrees, and 3,522 bachelor's degrees. The year saw the graduation of the first batch of Master of Nursing and Master of Architecture students. This year honorary doctorates were awarded to four distinguished persons. Dr. Li Ka-shing, eminent entrepreneur and chairman and managing director of Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited and chairman of Hutchison Whampao Limited, was conferred the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws. Prof. Wu Jie-ping, internationally renowned urologist and honorary president of Beijing Medical University and honorary director of its Institute of Urology, was conferred the honorary degree of Doctor of Science. Also receiving the honorary degree of Doctor of Science was Prof. Yang Chen-ning, Nobel laureate in physics and distinguished professor-at-large of The Chinese University. Dr. Deanna Lee Rudgard, philanthropist and a director of Hysan Development Company Limited, received the honorary degree of Doctor of Social Science. Their citations were written and delivered by Prof. Serena Jin and Prof. Andrew Parkin, the public orators. Prof. Yang, who was originally scheduled to address the congregation on behalf of the honorary graduates, was unable to attend the ceremony due to health reasons. His speech was delivered by Prof. Andrew Parkin. In his speech, Prof. Yang said he is 'cautiously optimistic' about the future of Hong Kong. He believes that with its wealth of human resources, its excellent geographical location, and its ability to face challenges, the HKSAR is well-poised to make use of the multifarious possibilities that future science and technology will open up for humankind. On the same day, the four colleges, the Part-time Degree Programmes, and the Graduate School also held graduation ceremonies for their students. From right: Dr. Lee Hon Chiu, Council chairman; Dr. the Hon. Anson Chan, Acting Chief Executive of the HKSAR; Prof. Arthur K.C. Li, vice-chancellor Table 1 Degree Breakdown Degree Number of Degrees Awarded Honorary Doctorates 4 Doctor of Medicine 5 Doctor of Philosophy 72 Master's 604 Bachelor's 3,522 Total 4,207 Table 2 Bachelor Degree Breakdown by Field Field Number of Degrees Awarded Arts 582 Business Administration 667 Education 198 Engineering 414 Medical Sciences 9 Medicine and Surgery 138 Nursing 80 Pharmacy 33 Science 714 Social Science 687