How to make a career switch in Hong Kong with postgraduate programmes
- For those individuals considering a change in career, some of Hong Kong’s top institutions offer postgraduate-level programmes to make that possible
For all kinds of reasons, professionals who have started out on one career track can have a sudden epiphany. Perhaps they come to realise that, despite their best efforts, they are not cut out for the commercial world with its cycle of meetings about sales targets, budgets and the latest restructuring. Or it dawns on them, amid the routines of office life, that they have taken a wrong turn somewhere along the way and that – rather than marketing, finance or engineering – their real talents and interests in fact lie in the field of education.
The good news for such individuals is that, these days, there are plenty of opportunities to change direction. Whether the main reason is a belated vocation, a wish to give something back by sharing skills and knowledge, or simply a desire for further qualifications and a new challenge, there are now numerous postgraduate-level programmes available in Hong Kong which make that possible.
With some, the focus is more on teacher training and the know-how needed to manage classrooms and school-based activities, with many current teachers keen for career advancement also encouraged to apply. In others, the emphasis leans instead towards things like the principles of curriculum design and the latest theories on pedagogy and language acquisition.
Therefore, it makes sense for anyone contemplating a further degree in the field to weigh up the options and be clear what they expect to get for the time and money they intend to invest in the process.
The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) has introduced an MA in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) education, which aims to promote a holistic and comprehensive understanding of what it takes to teach those subjects. The programme is available in both one-year full-time and two-year part-time modes. An intake of between 40 and 50 students is expected next year and beyond.
“This is the first master’s programme in Hong Kong to focus 100 per cent on STEM education,” says Dr Eric Tsang Po-keung, head of the Department of Science and Environmental Studies at EdUHK. “We equip participants with the knowledge and skills to apply technology and engineering design in solving problems and to pass that expertise on to others.”
