Aim of the Scheme 

The Student Affairs Office administers a number of bursaries and interest-free loans which are intended to provide supplementary assistance to students whose necessary expenses cannot be covered by the government's Tertiary Student Finance Scheme - Publicly-funded Programmes (TSFS) and the Non-means-tested Loan Scheme (NLS) and/or their family/personal resources.

Source of Funds 

The funds are made available by the generous donations of private organizations and individuals. With the unfailing support from our donors, around 3.4 million dollars of bursaries and loans were offered under the Scheme in 2010/11.

Eligibility

Local full-time UGC-funded students with demonstrable financial difficulties are eligible to apply.  Students however are reminded that the government schemes are the main sources of financial support and they should attempt to apply for the TSFS and/or NLS before they apply for this Scheme.

Form and Level of Assistance  

Assistance may be in the form of bursary (助學金) (no repayment needed) and/or interest-free loan (免息貸款).  The level of assistance offered to each successful applicant is normally determined by the extent to which the applicant's tuition fee and basic living expenses cannot be covered by Government assistance and his/her family/personal resources, as well as the funds available for disbursement.

In 2010/11, of the 855 applications, about 462 cases (54%) were successful under the PolyU Scheme. The average amount of assistance was approximately HK$6,700.  The bursary amount normally ranged from $1,000 to $10,000 while the loan amount ranged from $6,000 to $10,000.

¹ Application Period