CityU’s ‘Firsts’ and Pioneering Records

For a university barely in its forties, holding its own in Hong Kong’s fiercely competitive higher-education arena often depends less on pedigree than on a handful of distinctive edges that nobody else can claim. CityU‘s two most recognisable calling cards are the only veterinary school in Hong Kong and its three-year reign as the world’s “Most International University”. This article rounds up the City University of Hong Kong‘s “firsts” and record-breaking achievements, noting the scope of each claim (Hong Kong-wide / regional / global) and its source wherever possible; we prioritise primary sources or multi-party verification and avoid vague promotional language. For basic facts, see general-facts.md; for CityU’s institutional personality, see campus-character-and-identity.md.

# 1. Hong Kong‘s Only Veterinary School ★ Pioneering First

CityU’s Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences (JCC) is its most distinctive calling card:

• It offers Hong Kong‘s first and only Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) programme (per the JCC College page^※).
• The curriculum is modelled on Cornell University’s veterinary programme in the United States, with a collaboration established in 2009^※.
• Timeline: the veterinary school was founded in 2014^※ → the BVM programme launched in 2016^※ → the first cohort enrolled in 2017^※ → it was named after receiving a donation from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust in 2018^※.
• CityU‘s stated ambition is to establish Hong Kong’s first veterinary school and Asia‘s first internationally accredited veterinary school (according to the University).

# 2. World’s Most International University ★ Three Consecutive Titles

• Times Higher Education (THE) publishes an annual “Most International Universities” ranking based on four indicators: international students, international staff, international co-authorship, and international reputation.
• CityU first claimed the top spot in 2024^※ and held the number-one position for three straight years — 2024, 2025 and 2026^※ — securing a hat-trick.
• Underlying data: international faculty account for roughly 70%^※, students come from more than 90 nationalities^※, and the University has a high proportion of international co-authored papers.

This is CityU‘s most prominent global accolade in recent years: on the metric of “internationalisation”, CityU outperforms many world-renowned institutions with far longer histories and higher overall rankings.

# 3. Creative Media Pioneer ★ Among the Region’s First

• The School of Creative Media (SCM) was founded in 1998^※, making it one of the earliest schools in Hong Kong and the region to fuse art, technology and media.
• The School is known for its interdisciplinary creative-media education and output; the Run Run Shaw Creative Media Centre, designed by Daniel Libeskind and opened in 2011^※, has become a CityU landmark.

# 4. Patent Output ★ First in Hong Kong

• In the league table of the world‘s top 100 universities granted US patents, CityU ranks first in Hong Kong and eighth in Asia^※ (2025).
• Citations per faculty stood at second globally and first in Asia in the QS 2026 rankings^※.

“First in Hong Kong for patents + first in Asia for citations per faculty” together reinforce CityU’s self-positioning as application-oriented and research-prolific, in line with its disciplinary strengths in engineering, materials and science.

# 5. Top Young University ★ Rankings

• In the THE Young University Rankings, CityU has been placed as high as 4th in the world^※ (2024), putting it among the global elite of universities founded within the last 50 years.

The Young University Rankings are designed for institutions with a relatively short history (usually founded within 50 years); CityU was established in 1984, and its strong showing in this table underlines a trajectory of rapid advancement from a late start.

# 6. Governance and Personalities ‘Firsts’

• Longest-serving Vice-Chancellor: the fourth Vice-Chancellor and President, Way Kuo, served for fifteen years from 2008 to 2023^※, the longest tenure of any CityU President.
• Upgraded from polytechnic status: CityU, together with Baptist University and PolyU, received university title in 1994^※ — part of the wave of polytechnic-to-university upgrades in Hong Kong during the 1990s.

# 7. Quick-reference table of ‘Firsts’

# 8. Recently added ‘Firsts / Records’

As our research has deepened, this archive has added several further ‘firsts’ and records established in recent years and backed by reliable sources (all cross-refer to dedicated in-depth articles elsewhere on the site):

• Asia‘s first dual-accredited veterinary undergraduate programme: CityU’s BVM programme holds dual accreditation from the UK‘s Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) and the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council (AVBC); CityU describes it as Asia’s first veterinary undergraduate programme accredited by both major regulatory bodies. The first batch of 11 graduates registered to practise in 2023, becoming Hong Kong‘s first locally trained veterinarians^※ (see ../11-medical-hospital/).
• Hong Kong’s first School of Energy and Environment: the School of Energy and Environment (SEE) was established in 2009 and, according to public sources, is the first dedicated school of its kind in Hong Kong (see ../01-academics/).
• Region‘s first standalone School of Data Science: CityU set up the School of Data Science in 2018; public sources identify it as the region’s first independent school focusing on data science (the School was integrated into the College of Computing in 2024; see ../01-academics/).
• Greater China‘s first triple-crown business school: the College of Business obtained the three major accreditations — AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA — by 2008, making it, according to CityU, the first business school in Greater China to hold all three (see ../01-academics/business-school-triple-crown.md).
• One of three PCLL-awarding institutions: the School of Law is one of only three institutions in Hong Kong authorised to offer the Postgraduate Certificate in Laws (PCLL), a prerequisite for legal practice.
• Hong Kong’s only university in the global top 100 for US patents: for nine consecutive years (2016–2024) CityU has ranked first in Hong Kong and is the only local university in the global top 100^※ (see ../04-research/).