Introduction
Research Student Attachment Programme – Incoming (RSAP-Incoming) provides international PhD students with an opportunity for research attachment at PolyU to foster collaborative research. Two rounds of applications are invited each year.
Application conditions and eligibility
- The duration of attachment is from a minimum of three months to a maximum of one year.
- Current PhD students with good academic standing, whose applicant home institutions are overseas (except Mainland, Macau and Taiwan), are eligible for application.
- The applicants and host supervisor should have common research interests to ensure high-quality supervision. For host supervisors at the rank of Research Assistant Professor, joint supervision with academic staff with the level of Assistant Professor or above is required.
- Students who previously received financial support from RSAP cannot re-apply.
Period of attachment
- The actual duration may vary depending on the approval of student visa by the Immigration Department of the HKSAR Government.
- Successful applicants will receive an offer letter GS detailing the application result, duration of attachment and the approved financial support. The offer is valid for nine months after the issue date of the letter.
Selection
- The Graduate School (GS) shall select and approve applications based on application quality and potential internationalisation impact.
- Application approval is subject to funding availability.
Financial support
- Successful applicants will be offered a subsistence allowance of HK$400 per day. The maximum allowance is capped at HK$72,000, i.e., the amount for a maximum of 180 days.
- Any visiting period before the issue date of the offer letter is not eligible for retroactive financial support.
- Successful applicants are not required to pay tuition fees to PolyU, but may be required to pay tuition fees to their home institution.
Application procedures and timeline
- Step 1: Applicants should seek consent from a potential host supervisor prior to application. The research interests and contact information of PolyU faculty staff can be found on the PolyU Scholars Hub.
- Step 2: The research plan and expected outcome must be mutually agreed.
- Step 3: Application can be made via the online submission system. Required submission documents include:
- A support letter on the home unit’s official letterhead, specifying the full name of the PhD student, the name of the host supervisor, and the attachment period.
- A copy of the applicant’s academic transcript of PhD study, or an official certification of current PhD student status;
- A brief resume of the applicant with a list of representative publications, and
- A brief resume of the host supervisor (up to 5 pages) with a list of representative publications and PhD student supervision experience.
- Timeline:
Date Event 1 September 2026 Call for applications 26 October 2026 (23:59 HKT) Application deadline 29 October 2026 PolyU supervisor endorsement deadline 4 November 2026 Departmental (DoRPgS) assessment deadline December 2026 GS application selection and approval 30 December 2026 GS notification of results via email
Enquiries
For enquiries, please contact the Graduate School by email at gs.attachment@polyu.edu.hk.
