Funding Scheme for student projects/activities by Tam Wing Fan Innovation Fund and Philomathia Foundation Innovation Fund
Background

The Innovation Academy serves as an accelerator for inspiration and implementation. The Funding Scheme for student projects/activities by Tam Wing Fan Innovation Fund and Philomathia Foundation Innovation Fund (hereafter called the “funding scheme”) aims to identify, engage and nurture student projects/activities with creative potential to tackle emerging complex engineering problems in the world. 

Funding principles

The funded projects/activities should focus on out-of-classroom learning experience with the aims of aligning with the vision and missions of the Faculty of Engineering and the Innovation Academy.

All Engineering undergraduates, taught postgraduates and InnoHub members can apply for financial support to cover the expenses incurred in the development of projects/activities, such as prototyping, testing, deployment and refining. This funding scheme should be able to support equipment, materials, consumables and other necessary expenditure incurred in the development of projects/activities.

Furthermore, all Engineering undergraduates, taught postgraduates and InnoHub members can apply for travel support to subsidize in general a maximum of 70% of the travel and accommodation expenses for participating in overseas experiential learning activities / out-of-classroom activities which are endorsed by the Faculty, Innovation Academy or Tam Wing Fan Innovation Wing. Overseas experiential learning activities may include but not limited to study tour, short visit and conference, etc.

Normally, a maximum of HK$100,000 will be funded to an individual project, subject to approval by the Innovation Academy Steering Committee.

Important dates

First Round of Academic Year 2022-2023:

  • Deadline: October 14, 2022
  • Cover period: December 1, 2022 to November 30, 2023

Second Round of Academic Year 2022-2023:

  • Application Period: February, 2023
  • Cover period: April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024
Application and review

Applicants should arrange for the following materials to reach the Innovation Academy by October 18. 2024 (Friday):

  1. A completed application form;
  2. A full budget proposal which normally cover the period from December 1, 2024 to November 30, 2025; and
  3. All other supporting documents as required in the application form

Assessment of application will be conducted by the Innovation Academy on the basis of:

  • Objectives of the project;
  • Contribution to out-of-classroom learning in the team and Innovation Wing;
  • Relationship to technology application / development of the project
  • Deliverables of the project;
  • Execution plan; and
  • Funding request and budget proposal.

The funding will be reimbursed on an accountable basis. To facilitate enriching students’ learning experience through experiential learning, it is desirable for academic staff of departments to serve as supervisors of these students, and technical support from departments are also essential to facilitate students to go through the learning process in working on project.

Report and deliverables

Students are required to submit a project completion report with the following deliverables within one month after the completion of project:

i. Project Completion Report

  • Submit a report in docx. format within a month after the project completion.

ii. Media links

  • Poster – dimensions of 36 inches (width) x 54 inches (height) with at least 150dpi.
  • Project images – include the cover image and at least 5 project images with printable quality.
  • One-minute video – a short video of project highlight.

iii. Students’ written sharing

  • Short written sharing from each team member of the project.

iv. The project teams will be invited to disseminate the project deliverables and outcomes through:

  • Website and promotional materials of the Faculty of Engineering, Innovation Academy and/or Tam Wing Fan Innovation Wing, where appropriate.
  • Conducting sharing/workshops for Innovation Wing members
  • Presenting their work to the University community and/or the wider public in various occasions but not limited to:
    1. InnoWing Carnival
    2. Inno Show

v. Acknowledgement to the Faculty of Engineering and the respective funding source(s) on the poster, images, videos, written reports or other written publications should be made.

General application guidelines

The funding provided for each successful application will vary according to the expenses incurred. In general, the following item(s) will be supported, subject to approval by the Innovation Academy and/or the Faculty of Engineering.

Application and Cover Period:

First Round:
  • Application Period: October
  • Cover period: December 1 to November 30 of next year
Second Round:
  • Application Period: February
  • Cover period: April 1 to March 31 of next year

Quotations Requirement:

Please observe the following guidelines for the cost limits and required procedures for all procurements:

Cost LimitsRequired procedures

>$30K

>$5K but of an attractive nature

Minimum 2 competitive written quotations are required.
>$30K to $150KMinimum 3 competitive written quotations are required, with at least 1 from HKU’s Registered Supplier List.

Notes:

  • Quotations by HK-based suppliers and vendors are highly recommended.
  • Applicants are advised to seek advice from their supervisor before submitting their application

Inventory items (e.g. equipment, AV or PC items, etc.):

  • The funding for equipment will be handled on a case-by-case basis. Applicants should provide detailed justifications on the usage of the equipment on their application. In general, equipment are items with an asset value greater than HK$15,000, and/or items above HK$5,000 but of an attractive nature, such as AV and PC items.
  • The applicants are required to submit the application with all necessary supporting documents, such as item descriptions and quotations. The Innovation Academy and Tam Wing Fan Innovation Wing will be responsible for the procurement of the items, if appropriate. Applicants are not required to make any purchase/procurement.
  • Project teams must not use the funding to purchase any of the following items without prior approval by the Innovation Academy:
    1. Personal electronic devices such as cell phones, tablets, iPod, iPad, MP3 players, digital cameras/video recorders and PDAs; and
    2. Standard equipment such as desktop personal computers, servers, laptop computers, printer, scanners and standard software/software license/dataset known to be available, or reasonably expected to be provided in the university.
  • Applicants must seek prior endorsement from their Supervisor(s)/Advisor(s) and if necessary,  seek advice from the Innovation Academy, before any procurement procedures. Otherwise, the purchase may be rejected.
  • Innovation Academy reserves the right to redeploy any equipment/software acquired through the Funding Scheme.

Non-Inventory items (e.g. consumables, GPU servers or generative AI API services):

    •  
  • Applicants should follow the University’s guidelines and provide justifications for reimbursing expenses for non-inventory items.
  • Essential operational expenses may be considered. In general, project materials and consumables are supported.
  • Expenditures on staff cost, food and beverages will not be supported by the funding scheme.
  • Project teams must seek prior approval by Innovation Academy before subscribing to any online GPU servers and generative AI API services.
  • Applicants are advised to seek advice from their  Supervisor(s)/Advisor(s) and/or Innovation Academy before making any procurement decisions.

Subsidy for student travel and accommodation for participation in endorsed overseas experiential learning activities:

The funding scheme could support a maximum of 70% of the travel and accommodation expenses in general for core members of the project teams to participate in overseas experiential learning activities / out-of-classroom activities which are endorsed by the Faculty, Innovation Academy or Tam Wing Fan Innovation Wing. These activities include but not limited to competitions and conferences, etc.

  • Airfare (including HK Airport Tax)
    1. Intended to cover the most direct routes from Hong Kong to the destination.
    2. Eligible class of air travel: Lowest fare round-trip economy class ticket with baggage allowance.
    3. Any additional costs for stopovers for personal reasons will not be covered.
    4. Competitive quotations (same destination, same class, and same period) for the most direct route for the trip from at least 3 travel agencies inclusive of 2 different air carriers should be provided for comparison purpose.
    5. Public means of domestic transportation expenses to and from the airport are reimbursable.
  • Hotel accommodation (room cost only)
    1. Intended to cover shared/most basic accommodation from the night following arrival at the destination up to and including the night before the departure from the destination (but excluding any overnight stay for personal reasons).
    2. Eligible standard of accommodation: 3-star or equivalent standard hotel/hostel.
    3. Competitive quotations of room rates (same region, same standard, and same period) in the same region as the innovation activities from at least 3 agencies/hotels should be provided for comparison purpose.
    4. Meals are not covered in this funding scheme.

Notes:

  • Original copy of receipt(s), invoice(s), quotation(s), copy of e-tickets(s), etc., should be provided in the application and reimbursement processes. If the applicant fails to present the original copy of relevant documents, the Innovation Academy may not be able to process the reimbursement.
  • Project teams have to seek prior endorsement from their Supervisor(s)/Advisor(s) and if necessary, seek advice from the Innovation Academy, before any air-ticket purchase and hotel booking. Otherwise, the reimbursement claim may be rejected.
  • Proof for foreign currency translations (e.g. money exchange vouchers, credit card statements, etc.) should be provided, or else the relevant market rate published by the Hong Kong Association of Banks, where applicable, will be applied for reimbursement purpose.
Work flow for Funding Scheme