Hong Kong universities snap up office and retail sites amid classroom crunch

At least six universities in Hong Kong have moved into office buildings or shopping centres over the past three years as classroom space has tightened amid rising non-local enrolment, according to the latest data.

Among them is the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), which spent HK$345.4 million (US$44 million) in 2025 to acquire a 31,410 sq ft campus in Admiralty for its business school teaching centre.

The university unveiled the centre on Tuesday on the fourth floor of United Centre, the former site of Metropol Restaurant – a Chinese teahouse known for its traditional dim sum trolleys before closing in 2024.

“One of the drivers [for purchasing] is indeed more teaching spaces and also appropriate teaching spaces. We are very concerned about the student experience,” said Frederik Anseel, dean of business and management at HKUST.

“We want to have much more interaction and people work on case studies or do teamwork, so we need spaces and venues that are very much fit to allow students to work together.”

A property consultant said HKUST’s purchase reflected a broader trend of institutions capitalising on vacant commercial space.