About Cornell University
Cornell is a privately endowed research university and a partner of the State University of New York. As the federal land-grant institution in New York State, it has a responsibility—unique within the Ivy League—to make contributions in all fields of knowledge in a manner that prioritizes public engagement to help improve the quality of life in our state, the nation, the world.
About Cornell Summer Research Academy
This program provides undergraduate students an opportunity to pursue research projects under the supervision of Cornell faculty. There are projects in Computer and Information Science, Public Policy and Political Science, and International Business and Finance.
Upon completion of the program, students will earn 6 Cornell credits (pass/fail) and receive an official transcript from Cornell University. For details, please refer to their website.
Resarch Projects
| |
Research Proejct |
Faculty |
Project Description |
Research Interests |
| 1. |
Designing Culturally Appropriate AI Technologies in High-Stakes Settings |
Prof. Aditya Vashistha, Assistant Professor, Cornell Bowers School of Information Science |
Design and execute a research study on cultural appropriate AI and synthesize the findings. |
- Building appropriate computing systems to achieve social goods in low-resource environments.
- Intersection of Human-Computer Interaction, ICT & Development, and Accessibility.
|
| 2. |
Developing Seeker: Search Engine for Efficient Knowledge Extraction and Retrieval |
Prof. Sainyam Galhotra, Assistant Professor, Cornell Bowers School of Information Science |
Supporting the creation of the SEEKER dataset library. |
- Development of data science tools
- Theoretical computer design
- Machine learning
|
| 3. |
Investigating Relational Hoare Lenses: a framework for reasoning about configurable, open systems |
Prof. Nate Foster, Professor and Associate Dean for Research, Cornell Bowers School of Information Science |
Conduct research on the theory of RHLenses, further explore the relationship to bidirectional lenses and develop primitives based on connections to notions in category theory. |
- Using programming language to solve networking, databasing, and security issues.
- Design of better human-computer interaction tools.
|
| 4. |
Researching Emerging Markets Multinationals |
Prof. Lourdes Casanova, Senior Lecturer, SC Johnson School of Business, and Gail and Roberto Canizares Director of the Emerging Markets Institute |
- Conduct research and analysis on multinational corporate operations in emerging markets.
- Support the creation of tables and figures for EMI’s annual report.
- Participating students will be doing with Prof. Lourdes Casanova and her Emerging Markets Multinationals Report. You can find more details on the anticipated duties here.
|
- International business with a focus on emerging markets.
- Innovation
- Global Business and Strategy
|
| 5. |
Tracking Strategies of Democratic Backsliding and Resilience |
Dr. Paul Friesen, Research Associate, Center for Global Democracy, Brooks School of Public Policy |
- Research and update incidents of democratic attacks and resistance events.
- Analyze and evaluate the impact of events.
|
- Global Democracy
- Political Parties
- Political behavior and partisanship in Sub-Saharan Africa.
|
| 6. |
Democratic Attacks and Resistance Strategies |
Prof. Rachel Beatty Reidl, Director of Cornell’s Center on Global Democracy |
In cases of democratic backsliding, how do we understand when and why opposition coalitions form and/or succeed around pro-democracy mobilization? The focus will be on how backsliding occurs from actors who are internal to the democratic process itself, and use such institutions and organizations to pursue undue advantage and power accumulation to limit future competition.
|
This project will include a literature review, particularly focused on political parties and coalitions and how they function in relation to other institutions of horizontal and vertical accountability (legislatures, courts, electoral systems, watchdog agencies, etc).
|
* Notes:
- Students are required to arrive at the host institution no later than 1 June (Recommended arrival date: 30 May).
- Host Institutions may provide orientation activities for students, with some mandatory, which you should attend. You are required to pay attention to the host institution's arrival information and arrive in time.
- You should only depart after completion of the program (i.e. finishing all assessments, both compulsory and optional ones).
Program Dates
2 June 2025 - 11 July 2025 (5 weeks)
Application Deadline
13 March 2025 (Thu), 12nn (HKT)
Fees
HKUST students will bear the flight ticket, accommodation cost and other costs. Please see below estimates:
| Fees |
Amount (in USD) |
| Registration fee |
$750 |
| Visa fees (F-1 application & Sevis Fee) |
$535 |
| Accommodation |
Single-Occupany: $2,688
Double-Occupany: $2,216 |
| Student Health Insurance Program |
Approx. $654 |
| Summer student health fee |
$145 |
| Meal plan (optional) |
$1,575 (15 meals/week through Cornell Dining) |
Eligibility
HKUST students must apply through the Office of Global Learning. Individual direct application to the host institution will not be accepted. Students who have fulfilled the below requirements are eligible to apply for the program:
- HKUST full-time undergraduate students who have completed at least two year of study at HKUST by the start of the program and not currently in your final year at HKUST
- Good academic standing with CGA of 3.0 or above
- Demonstrated potential and passion in research
- Are not currently committed to other summer study abroad programs offered by HKUST Office of Global Learning (OGL) or Schools
Important Notes
- A placement in a study abroad program is a valuable opportunity offered by HKUST for HKUST students. It is a valuable resource which must be used effectively without wastage. You are expected to think carefully about your participation in such programs before you submit your application. There should be thorough consideration to the financial and time commitment involved. All research projects you select in your application, irrespective of their rank order, are assumed to be programs that you are prepared to take up. It is fine not to fill up all choices.
- If you withdraw from the program any time after you have committed to the offer, you will lose your eligibility to apply for HKUST Summer Research Abroad Program again in the future.
- Students must have active student status during the Summer Term. Students who are currently on study leave are required to shorten the period if necessary so that the study leave will NOT cover the Summer Term (i.e. end by Spring just before the summer program).
- OGL will have the final judgement on the HKUST Summer Research Abroad Program, including but not limited to programs offering, selection procedures, nomination decisions and program completion.
Application Procedures
- Click the "Apply Now" button on this page to complete HKUST application forms and submit supplementary documents. Please refer to section “Required documents/materials” below for details.
- Make sure you click the "Submit Application" button to submit your application before the deadline. No late applications will be accepted unless specified.
- Once your application is submitted, you are not allowed to make any changes to your project choices.
Required Documents/ Materials
Please prepare the documents listed below and upload on MyStudyAbroad System by the application deadline. It is not necessary to submit hard copies.
- Statement of Purpose
- Resume
- Passport Copy with a 6-month validity from the end date of the study abroad program
Selection Criteria
Selection is made taking into account the following factors:
- Academic standing (CGA); and
- Information provided in your questionnaire "(Outgoing) Research Interest and Project - OGL Research"
- Information provided in your Statement of Purpose and Resume; and
- Performance in the interview video*
*Performance in the interview video is crucial for the application. If our selection panel finds the performance unsatisfactory, NO offer will be given to the student regardless of the student's academic performance and other information submitted in the application.
Priority will be given to students who have research-related experiences previously.
Application Results
The results will be announced via MyStudyAbroad (with email notification sent to your HKUST email account) on a rolling basis. You are advised to check email regularly (including your junk folder). The offer is a confirmation of HKUST’s nomination only. Students will also be required to complete another set of application forms to the host institution. There could be cases that you may need to submit your application to the host institution very shortly after you receive OGL’s offer. The final admission decision rests with the host institution.
Accepting the offer
Each student is restricted to commit to one offer only within the same term. To commit to the offer, you must:
- Follow the instructions in the MyStudyAbroad system to commit to the offer. This may require the signing off some forms in the system.
- You are required to submit a deposit of HK$2,000 by the deadline stated on your offer letter. This deposit will be returned to you (i) upon submission of the official transcript issued by the host institution, and (ii) OGL's review of your study abroad report submitted by the deadline. If you subsequently withdraw, fail to complete the program and/or fail to submit your official transcript and study abroad report, the deposit will not be returned.
Declining the offer
- If you do not commit to the offer by the deadline stated on your offer letter, we assume that you decline the offer.
Withdrawal and Penalty
- Students who decide to withdraw from the HKUST Summer Research Abroad Program any time after committing to the offer for any reasons MUST inform OGL immediately via email at study.abroad@ust.hk.
- Students who withdraw from the program any time after committing to the offer will lose the eligibility to apply for HKUST Summer Research Abroad Program again in the future, and the deposit of HK$2,000 will not be returned.
- Students who fail to inform OGL of the withdrawal will not be allowed to apply for any programs offered by OGL again in the future.
Visa Information
Students are required to apply for a visa to participate in the program. Cornell International Services will provide information on applying for a student visa. The Cornell UG Admissions Office will prepare your I-20. For details, please refer to their website.
Insurance
HKUST students who take part in the University's study abroad programs will be covered by the University's Travel Insurance Plan. Please CLICK HERE for details.
Accommodation
Cornell University offers summer housing for students who participate in this program. More details can be found here.
HKUST Study Abroad Funding Support
HKUST provides funding support to students to support the study abroad participation. More details can be found at HKUST Study Abroad website.
