Hong Kong’s focus on rankings distorts universities’ true mission

“Hong Kong is the only city in the world with five universities ranked among the global top 100.” This talking point has become one of the Hong Kong government’s favourite slogans. It has appeared in government press releases and official speeches, including Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s policy address last year. Though pleasing to the ear, this distorts our education priorities. Hong Kong is also an outlier in attaching such political significance to university rankings. Once the Hong Kong...