The School of Public Policy at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen (SPP), officially announced its establishment in 2024. As a postgraduate school, SPP is dedicated to enrolling master’s and doctoral students with the goal of nurturing modern public policy professionals who are well-versed in public administration principles and have a command of leading-edge public policy tools. The school is committed to building an original knowledge system for Chinese public policy and administration, fostering the growth of applied social sciences in Shenzhen, and striving to become a world-class public policy school that reflects the public administration ethos of East Asia in general, and China in particular.

The SPP is characterized by four major attributes:

• An Inclusive Knowledge System: SPP will leverage the best practice of Chinese public policy and administration to build an inclusive knowledge system specific to Chinese political economy and public policy. This foundation will support the design and development of a curriculum that aligns with international standards.
• An Interdisciplinary Approach: SPP will establish interdisciplinary programmes tailored to national strategies and regional development needs. These programmes will emphasize the integration of humanities and social sciences, engineering, agriculture, and medical disciplines.
• A Focus on the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA): By conducting policy research on real issues in the GBA, SPP aims to cultivate modern public policy talent to support the sustainable social and economic development of the region.
• Cultural Exchange: with confidence in our own education offer, SPP will help cultivate policy research talent for other countries, with an initial focus on East Asia, particularly ASEAN nations, gradually extending to Europe and America.

SPP will initiate two master’s degree programmes, Public Policy and Urban Studies, in September 2024.

• The Public Policy programme is designed to develop academic talents capable of tackling complex public policy challenges. Rooted in foundational disciplines such as policy science, public administration, political science, economics, management and sociology, the curriculum will equip students with essential knowledge and conceptual frameworks of public policy. It will also foster their professional understanding of current public governance issues and enhance their competencies in identifying and resolving public policy issues, thereby preparing them to tackle the most critical public policy challenges on a global scale.
• The Urban Studies programme is designed to nurture scholars with a diverse academic background and a broad, global outlook. It will explore the complexity of urban development and urbanization theory, encompassing a range of disciplines including policy science, geography, urban planning, economics, sociology, and anthropology. This comprehensive approach aims to produce professionals who are adept at performing sophisticated analyses and possess a nuanced understanding of urban development and urbanization processes from a global perspective.

In the future, in response to the most pressing public policy and administration issues faced by the GBA and the country, SPP plans to offer various part-time master’s degree programmes in interdisciplinary fields. These programmes will include, but not be limited to:

• Public Policy (Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy)
• Public Policy (AI and Smart Governance)
• Public Policy (Healthcare and Emergency Management)
• Public Policy (Environmental and Climate Policy)
• Urban Studies (Megacity-Cluster Development and Governance)

At the same time, leveraging its inclusive knowledge system of Chinese political economy and public policy and administration, SPP will also offer various full-time academic master’s and doctoral programmes, including, but not limited to:

• Chinese Political Economy
• International Development and Global Governance
• Regional Economics and ASEAN Studies