Funder: Hong Kong Research Grants Council
Due Dates (Anticipated): September 2027 (Preliminary proposal deadline)
Funding Amounts: Up to $75 million in direct project costs for up to five years; discretionary exploratory funding up to $10 million for one year
Summary: Supports collaborative basic and applied research that develops UGC-funded universities’ existing strengths into world-leading areas of excellence.
Key Information: Applicants must be eligible for the RGC General Research Fund and may submit only one Project Coordinator application across AoE and TRS per exercise.
Description
The Areas of Excellence (AoE) Scheme, administered by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council (RGC), supports the eight University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universities in developing existing research strengths into areas of international excellence. It funds basic and applied research of high academic merit, with proposals expected to be broad and long-term yet sufficiently focused, combining research and teaching.
Research collaboration is a core requirement. The scheme encourages inter-institutional collaboration and interdisciplinary projects within a university, including collaboration involving humanities and social sciences. AoE primarily supports major projects outside the themes and grand challenge topics of the Theme-based Research Scheme (TRS). Assessment emphasizes prospects for international excellence and long-term relevance to Hong Kong’s social and economic development.
