PhD in Urban Governance and Design The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

By 2050, two out of every three people are likely to be living in cities or other urban centers, and most of the increase is expected to be highly-concentrated in a handful of countries, including China. Rapid urbanization and growth of cities call for high-quality public services and effective governance to make urban places more livable. The study of cities becomes an increasingly cross-disciplinary enterprise. The Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Program in Urban Governance and Design employs cross-disciplinary perspectives to analyze the data on cities from different sources (including population census, surveys, administrative, and big data) to address critical issues in contemporary urban governance and design.

The Ph.D. program seeks to train students in original research with a cross-disciplinary approach to urban governance and design and to cultivate independent and innovative thinking for knowledge creation in the field. A Ph.D. graduate is expected to demonstrate mastery of knowledge in the chosen area of research and to synthesize and create new knowledge making an original and substantial contribution to the cross-disciplinary studies of cities.