Entrance requirement
A Bachelor’s degree or the equivalent; and a minimum of two years of professional experience in a design related field is required. Candidates with other tertiary qualifications complemented by substantial relevant professional experience will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
A complete application includes
- Application form
- Letter of intent
- Three letters of recommendation (Academic/ Profession)~
- Evidence of academic qualification, i.e. Official Full Transcripts and Degree Certificates
- IELTS/ TOEFL report^
~ Design Strategies applicants need to provide an employment proof for meeting entrance requirements.
^ If you are not a native speaker of English, and your Bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification is awarded by institutions where the medium of instruction is not English, you are expected to fulfil the following minimum English language requirement for admission purpose: A Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score of 80 for the Internet-based test or 550 for the paper-based test; OR An overall Band Score of at least 6 in the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).
Interview
All admissions must go through the interview process. Shortlisted applicants will be invited to attend an interview in person (for local applicants) or over internet video calls (for non-local applicants).
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Number of credits: 36
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Normal Period of Study: 2 Years (part-time)
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Tuition: HK$167,400 (local) / HK$190,800 (non-local); Initial Programme Fee: Local student HK$18,600 (4 credits x HK$4,650)/ Non-local student HK$53,000 (10 credits x HK$5,300)
Financial Aid
- Subject to approval, a financial aid as an Alumni Bursary# (with a reimbursement of an amount equivalent to 5.4 credits) will be granted to PolyU Design BA graduates admitted into the Master of Design programmes in 2021-22. Eligible admittees will be informed of the application procedures before the academic year begins. This financial aid, offered in limited places, is administered by the School.
- Some subjects in the MDes scheme are Continuing Education Fund (CEF) reimbursable for eligible Hong Kong residents (who have the right of abode or the right to land or to remain in Hong Kong without restriction). Students taking these subjects will benefit from the CEF subsidy ceiling of HK$20,000. For further information on CEF, eligibility and the reimbursable courses list, please visit CEF official website.
- Extended Non-means-tested Loan Scheme (ENLS), administered by Student Finance Office (SFO) of the HK Government, offers interest-bearing loans to eligible local residents (who have the right of abode in the Hong Kong or have resided or have had their homes in Hong Kong continuously for three complete years prior to the commencement of the programme) to settle tuition fees. For details of the scheme, eligibility and application, please refer to SFO official website.
- This specialism under Master of Design is an eligible programme in the Targeted Taught Postgraduate Programmes Fellowships Scheme (2021-22). MDes Scheme has been allocated 22 fellowship places. Each Fellowship subsidises HK$120,000 of the programme tuition. Details are available online on UGC's website for public information. Visit SD news for information on eligibility, selection criteria, application procedures and application results and deadline.
- No scholarship is available for non-local students for 2021 entry.
# Remarks: Remarks: This financial aid is not applicable to CEF reimbursable courses. Applications from those who have obtained other forms of financial aid from the government or the PolyU pursuing the same programme will not be considered. The School reserves the right to change the terms or withdraw from offering the financial aid. In case of any dispute or disagreement, the School’s decision is final.
Type of VISA (for International Students)
This programme – with classes held on Friday evenings/ weekends – has a student group consisting of local professionals, expatriates, as well as non-local students.
For those of you who have been staying in Hong Kong under various types of visa/ entry permit: holders of a valid employment visa may apply to this programme as locals, and holders of a dependant visa or a visa under IANG as non-locals but do not require a student visa.
Mainland Chinese and nationals of other countries may apply as non-locals. You will need a student visa or a multiple entry visa to take up this programme, depending on your place of residence during your study.
Non-locals moving to Hong Kong for study will need a student visa and are required to enroll at least 9 credits in compulsory semesters (Semester 1 and 2).
For those who are based in cities close to Hong Kong and able to make travel arrangements to attend classes, you will need a multiple entry student visa. This visa permits multiple journeys to Hong Kong, and allows a maximum number of stay for each journey and for a year according to the class timetable. A study plan, in addition to other documents, is required for applying for this visa.
You will be informed by the Academic Registry (AR) of the details of visa applications, immigration regulations, health care, cost of living and other non-academic matters of concern to non-local students if you are offered admission to our programmes.
Visa applications are processed and determined by the Immigration Department of the Government (IMMD) of the HK SAR via PolyU upon admission. The process may take 8 to 10 weeks upon receipt of all the required documents.
MDes Talks: Student Blog
MDes Talks is a series of blog posts produced for prospective students who are considering graduate education in design by current students. It is set out to share their first-hand experience in the d-school pedagogy, their projects, takeaways, and student life in general.
Enquiry
Should you require further assistance, feel free to contact us by email at stephanie.ho@polyu.edu.hk or by phone +852 3400 3440.
