News & Announcements

We are pleased to let you know that you will be able to use your HKU Student Card for access to the University Libraries until August 31, 2023.

Notes:

• For updated access policy and service level, please refer to: https://lib.hku.hk/index.html.
• The above shall be eligible for access by graduands of the Class of 2022 with their HKU Student Cards until August 31, 2023.
• The access is eligible to the Year 2022 graduands who have already completed their studies in the following HKU programmes: Undergraduate, Taught Postgraduate, Research Postgraduate, Postgraduate Certificate and Diploma. The list does not include HKU SPACE.
• For those graduands who have lost their HKU Student Cards, they can apply for the Facility Access Card by filling in this form.
• For graduands who will be admitted to the HKU postgraduate programmes, when issued with a new HKU Student Card, their level of facility access as postgraduates will override their “Class of 2022” status.
• Kindly find more details at: https://www.newgrads.alumni.hku.hk/facility-access-2022

Librarian Message re: New Graduate Membership Scheme

As HKU Libraries celebrate our 110th anniversary, I am happy to report that we are launching a series of future-ready and user-friendly digital initiatives in an effort to enhance members’ experiences on and off campus.

We are also planning exhibitions, tours, seminars, and book talks to further our engagement with alumni and the public. Please visit here at our event site  for details of some of these activities.  Details of these initiatives and activities will be forthcoming. You are also welcome to visit the HKUL  anniversary website which features the history, memories and virtual tours of the Libraries.

In order to enhance access for alumni, HKUL will launch a HKU Graduate Membership scheme effective 1st September, 2022. Under the scheme, members will enjoy special privileges, including access to the Libraries, the use of workstations, access to e-resources remotely or on-site, as well as borrowing up to forty-eight books and six audio-visual materials. Members will also be invited to exclusive events to meet with writers, authors, and scholars.

All existing categories of graduate users, including Circle of Friends (HKU Graduate Platinum), Borrowers and Readers, will be consolidated into the single HKU Graduate Membership scheme with an annual fee of HK$550.   A 30% discount will be available to members for the first year of the membership.  The fees will support our conservation and restoration projects, allowing us to address the urgent need to preserve our rare and valuable collections.

With the rich legacy of the HKU Libraries, as a knowledge hub and repository of wisdom, HKUL have served our students, staff, alumni, and the entire HKU family for over a century.  I invite you to join us in honouring these memories and continue to help HKUL grow.

Yours sincerely,

Flora Ng
Chief Information Officer and
University Librarian

Librarian Message re: Special Collections Access Procedure 

Jun 2022 

Dear Special Collections Users, 

The HKU Library Special Collections covers a variety of rare and unique materials which are quite fragile. This includes the western rare books relating to early China and Sinology dating back as early as 1588 – Historia della’ China, in Italian. These rare books collections are known as Morrison, Hankow and Charter Collections. Moreover, it contains materials relating to Japanese Occupation in Hong Kong. It also holds the looted library books from HKUL by the Japanese during World War II. Within the Special Collections, we have a unique Hong Kong Collection. 

Hong Kong Collection serves as a permanent one-stop repository of research materials covering all aspects about Hong Kong. Since 1974, we actively collect various kinds of Hong Kong-related publications and materials with the mission of preserving the Hong Kong history and cultural heritage.  We have the most complete Hong Kong Collection globally.  We are proud to support many researchers for Hong Kong studies with our collection. 

 To maximize the longevity of our special collections, the Preservation and Conservation team performs the necessary treatments to stabilize existing damages and prevent further damages. We also perform a wide range of care activities.  All these will enhance the overall value, significance and usage of the collections. The special collections are irreplaceable and invaluable sources for understanding the past, which is the foundation for the future.  

 Access procedures were recently updated to align with international best practice and policies of other international institutions and universities with Special Collections.  We focus on the preservation and protection on unique, valuable, rare and irreplaceable collections.  We need to prevent mishandling, over usage and vandalism.  We also want to ensure the collections and study space are being best utilised by researchers and scholars who need physical access to the collections.  

The official announcement and refined procedures including advance booking of our research desks, are on HKUL homepage. Please refer to this official source directly for details.  We will continue to review our approach as appropriate.  

Regards, 

Flora Ng,
CIO / University Librarian