Programmes

Not all applicants will have to be interviewed before participating in an EL project. Interviews will be arranged at the request of the EL partners. Applicants will be informed if interviews are required.

Most EL projects are open to students of all majors unless specified. Students are advised to read the project details carefully to find out more about eligibility, project duration and other important information before making an application.

For the PGDE full-time EL programme, the intake of students follows the stated pre-requisite strictly. Students applying for a project without the stated pre-requisite will be rejected directly by the community partner. Therefore, it is essential to read the project details carefully before indicating your preferred projects.

However, in the UG programmes, we have had experience of having Chinese major students teaching English in Vietnam and Cambodia who had shown to be excellent members of the project teams. Therefore, we encourage ALL students to apply the UG EL programmes regardless of the project focus. In these programmes, the student teachers’ interest, passion and commitment to a project are our primary consideration.

For UG students, self-nominated initiative can be considered under BBED6803 – Serving to Learn: Co-Constructing the Community through Student Leadership. Students are welcomed to work in teams (max. three students) to propose their own project and please approach the EL Team for advice.

If PGDE students are already working on their own EL projects, they may be considered as fulfilling the EL requirements with their own work or project. Students are advised to send the proposed project details to [javascript protected email address] if they would like to nominate their own project. However, the decision of the EL Team over whether the proposed project is feasible or not is FINAL.

Study Abroad Programmes that are arranged by the University will be covered by the Corporate Business Travel Insurance Policy and the Group Personal Accident Insurance Policy for students. Please refer to the Finance and Enterprises Office for further information.

It is essential for students participating in EL programmes outside Hong Kong to ensure their passports/travel documents are valid throughout the programme period. Many countries/regions have strict regulations that prohibit entry to individuals whose passports/travel documents have a validity of less than six months from the proposed departure date. Therefore, we strongly advise students to check these details before enrolling on an overseas project to avoid any inconveniences.

Additionally, students are responsible for their own visa applications and other necessary pre-departure preparation. They may need to apply for a visa on their own for entry to and/or transfer flights in a foreign country/region and bear the application fees. Therefore, we recommend that students consult the Immigration Department and the consulate/embassy of the country/region involved to ensure their passports/travel documents and visas are valid before departure. They can also seek advice from the Faculty Office if they encounter any problems with their preparation.

Students are allowed to extend their overseas trip after the EL project period with prior approval obtained from their Project Coordinator (as long as it does not involve missing timetabled classes or commitments at HKU). Students who decide to travel before or after the EL period are responsible for obtaining their own travel insurance beyond the EL period. 

Some of the overseas/non-local EL projects are subsidised by the Gallant Ho Experiential Learning Fund, and students will be required to contribute part of the total expenses only. You may also explore other sources of financial support like the EL scholarships and bursary.

When applying for additional funding, you may ask the organiser or the course coordinator for an estimation of the overall cost of the programme. This might include flight tickets, visa applications, accommodation and programme fees. Having the estimation will help you select the appropriate funding source and prepare documents to apply for it. For more details, please refer to the updated details of the terms and conditions of the relevant funding application guidelines.

At the application stage, PGDE full-time students will be asked to indicate their three preferred projects. The EL Team will then match each student to a project based on relevance and suitability for the EL partner concerned to consider the application. If all three preferred projects are oversubscribed, students will be contacted individually for other arrangements. Students should be aware that quotas are set by the EL partners, and the EL Team may not be able to provide additional places if a course or project is oversubscribed.

Yes, certainly. Students are most welcome to continue with the EL as volunteers after the timetabled period. One of the Faculty’s aims in setting up these EL projects is to serve the community by establishing a sustainable service or relationship with the partner organisation.