PolyU's Hung Hom Halls Thoroughly Explained: The Two University-Managed Residences and Ho Man Tin

A comprehensive data repository for The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) – Student Halls of Residence and Campus Traditions Module (Part I) Coverage: Hung Hom Halls of Residence, Homantin Halls of Residence, Residential Colleges, application and points-based allocation, post-COVID normalisation, new hall developments, cross-institution comparisons, and the annual calendar. The "lived experience" — including hall association self-governance, the identity tensions of residential colleges, and the perceived fairness of hall-place allocation — is covered in Part II.

Nine halls crammed into a single 22-storey tower block in Hung Hom; six colours that once defined the entirety of Ho Man Tin's hall identity — until "Green" became CURI and "Violet" became STARS. PolyU has no collegiate system, a fact that makes residential life one of this urban university's rare arenas for collective living.

PolyU does not operate a collegiate system (no college student unions or college-based hall networks). Student accommodation is centred on two university-managed student halls of residence, overseen by the Student Affairs Office (SAO). The main campus sits in Hung Hom, Kowloon, while the two halls are located separately in Hung Hom and Ho Man Tin.

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# 1. Hung Hom Halls of Residence

The Hung Hom Halls are PolyU's first student residence. According to the SAO's official page, the halls are located at 1 Hung Lai Road, Hung Hom; completed in 2002, they accommodate approximately 3,000 students^※. The English Wikipedia entry records that the complex covers over 5,800 square metres, is a 22-storey tower, and is internally divided into nine distinct halls^※.

According to the SAO's official page, the nine halls (one postgraduate, eight undergraduate) and their floor allocations are as follows:

As detailed on the SAO's official page, each hall establishes a Hall Association and is guided by a Warden and a team of 4–6 Tutors, who organise activities to enrich residential life^※.

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# 2. Homantin Halls of Residence

The Homantin Halls are PolyU's second student residence. According to the English Wikipedia entry, they are located at 15 Fat Kwong Street, were completed in 2012, and provide 1,650 residential places^※. The Cantonese Wikipedia entry notes that the building is 25 storeys tall, is near Ho Man Tin MTR station, and is about a 20–30-minute walk from campus^※.

The halls were originally divided into six blocks, each named after a colour: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, and Violet. Some blocks have since been converted into Residential Colleges:

• According to the English Wikipedia entry, the Green block was redesignated as CURI Residential College in 2021. It encourages research and innovation and prioritises students participating in the URIS scheme^※.
• According to the SAO's Residential Life overview, the Homantin Halls now comprise four general halls and two residential colleges; the two residential colleges are CURI Residential College (est. 2021) and STARS Residential College (est. 2022)^※. The total capacity of the university's two hall complexes exceeds 4,600 students.

The names of the colour blocks and the establishment or renaming of residential colleges are subject to annual adjustments; refer to the SAO's current-year publications for the latest information.

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# 3. Residential Colleges and Residential Education

Although PolyU lacks a traditional collegiate system, it has developed a mechanism of Residential Colleges and Residential Education within its halls. The SAO's Residential Life overview positions the halls as an "environment that values both living and learning." Key programmes include:

• CURI Residential College: focusing on Research and Innovation.
• STARS Residential College: focusing on Arts and Sciences.
• Living & Learning Communities (LLC).
• House of Intercultural Living & Learning (HILL).
• Green Living Programmes.

Applying to the CURI or STARS Residential Colleges typically requires prior participation in their respective affiliated schemes.

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# 4. Hall Culture and Traditions

• Hall Associations: Each hall has its own Hall Association, run by a student executive committee (known as a "jong"). These committees organise activities, manage welfare provisions, and handle external liaison. Participation in hall activities earns points, which are linked to the chance of securing a residential place the following year.
• Wardens and Tutors: As outlined on the SAO page, each hall is guided by a team of a Warden and Tutors, who cultivate a "harmonious and vibrant hall community."
• PolyU Hall Festival: According to the SAO's Residential Life overview, PolyU holds the annual PolyU Hall Festival every November, a major university-wide event for the halls^※.
• Hall Orientation: Each hall runs its own Hall Orientation Camp (Hall O Camp), running parallel to the university and departmental orientations, which serves as an entry point for newcomers to integrate into the hall community.

"Living in Hall" and "getting onto a jong" are colloquially considered quintessential experiences of Hong Kong university life. Traditions such as hall songs, annual dinners, and inter-floor or inter-block competitions vary by hall and are determined by the current year's Hall Association.

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# 5. New Hall Development: Kowloon Tong and "Four Years, Two Stays"

In recent years, PolyU has been planning new student residences in Kowloon Tong. Multiple Hong Kong media outlets reported in 2023 that PolyU would construct four student residence blocks in the Tak Kwong Road area of Kowloon Tong, providing about 1,680 places, with an expected completion date of 2028^※. The project's groundbreaking ceremony was held on 9 May 2023^※. Reports suggest that with the Ho Man Tin halls and the new Kowloon Tong development, PolyU hopes to offer a "four years, two stays" arrangement (meaning students would have the opportunity to live in halls twice during a four-year degree).

The completion year and the exact number of residential places for this project are subject to the final confirmed figures published by the University and relevant government bodies. This section records only the facts made public during the planning stage.

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# 6. Campus Events and Cultural Festivals

Major university-wide events and cultural festivals at PolyU are largely coordinated by bodies including the SAO and the Culture Promotion and Events Office (CPEO). Typical events include:

• Orientation: a multi-layered system of university, departmental, and hall-based orientation activities.
• PolyU Hall Festival (every November).
• Cultural Festivals: CPEO-organised events such as the PolyU Chinese Culture Festival^※ and the PolyU International Cultural Festival^※ (see sports-and-arts.md for details on arts and cultural groups and programmes).

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# 7. Residential Colleges: The Positioning and Character of CURI and STARS

# 7.1 CURI Residential College

The name CURI evokes PolyU's spirit of research, innovation, and interdisciplinarity. According to PolyU's Residential Life page, CURI Residential College was established in 2021^※, with Research and Innovation as its theme.

• It gives priority admission to students participating in the Undergraduate Research and Innovation Scheme (URIS).
• It arranges for Resident Professors/Scholars to interact with residents.
• It features a shared research workshop and an innovation discussion space.
• It provides students with value-added activities such as specialised research training workshops and industry visits.

# 7.2 STARS Residential College

STARS Residential College was established in 2022^※, with Arts and Sciences as its theme.

• It recruits students interested in interdisciplinary exploration.
• It organises activities such as reading groups, art creation workshops, and experimental experience sessions.
• It collaborates with the CPEO to connect students with the university's arts resources.

# 7.3 Comparison with the Traditional Collegiate System

Unlike the collegiate system at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), PolyU's CURI and STARS Residential Colleges are elective, themed residential communities rather than a comprehensive college-based identity system.

• There is no dedicated college-level tutorial system and no College Master.
• There are no college-based extracurricular activity points or mandatory college courses.
• Students primarily identify with their academic department or school, not their residential college. This arrangement makes PolyU's residential colleges more akin to the "Themed Living-Learning Communities" found at British and American universities, rather than CUHK's traditional nine-college system.

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# 8. Homantin Halls in Detail

# 8.1 Hardware Specifications

Based on a synthesis of English and Cantonese Wikipedia entries, the Homantin Halls of Residence:

• Address: 15 Fat Kwong Street, Ho Man Tin.
• Stand 25 storeys tall.
• Were completed in 2012.
• Are a 20–30-minute walk from the main campus, or about a 10-minute journey via the MTR (Ho Man Tin station).
• Provide approximately 1,650 residential places^※.

# 8.2 The Six Colour Blocks

The original six blocks were named after colours:

The colour-based names remain widely known, but note that the Green and Violet blocks have now been functionally converted into residential colleges.

# 8.3 Transport

Between the Homantin Halls and the main campus:

• MTR: Ho Man Tin station (Tuen Ma line) to Mong Kok East station, then an interchange to Hung Hom station — about two stops in total; combined walking and MTR takes about 10–15 minutes.
• Walking: takes approximately 20–25 minutes.
• Some students commute by motorcycle or bicycle; the University does not provide a dedicated shuttle bus service.

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# 9. Hall Applications and the Waiting-List System

# 9.1 Application and Balloting

Residential places at PolyU are limited, and demand routinely outstrips supply. A summary of the general student guide indicates:

• New undergraduate students can apply for a place upon admission, typically allocated by their academic department or through a ballot.
• Continuing students' eligibility for a renewed place is linked to their annual hall points (earned through hall activity participation, service on the Hall Association, etc.).
• For CURI/STARS Residential Colleges, students must first participate in the relevant scheme before they can apply.

# 9.2 The "Four Years, Two Stays" Aspiration

A common aspiration among students and some departments is a "four years, two stays" model (two opportunities to live in halls during a four-year undergraduate degree).

• The two existing hall complexes (Hung Hom + Ho Man Tin) house roughly 4,650 students in total.
• The total undergraduate enrolment is approximately 15,000–16,000, meaning the residential rate is less than 30%.
• The new Kowloon Tong halls (projected 2028 completion, approx. 1,680 places) are expected to significantly raise the residential rate, moving it closer to the "four years, two stays" goal.

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# 10. Hall Festival and the Annual Calendar of Major Events

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# 11. Hall Points and the Eligibility System for Continued Residence

Residential places at PolyU are scarce, and the right to stay on is tied to a points-based assessment system. The specific criteria for points vary slightly between Hall Associations but generally include:

With the overall undergraduate residential rate below 30% (approx. 15,000 undergraduates for roughly 4,650 beds across the two complexes), competition for continued residence is intense; active participation in hall activities is the key to securing points.

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# 12. The Typical "Hong Kong University Experience" Within Halls

During their residence, PolyU students typically encounter the following elements of the broader Hong Kong university experience:

• Floor Life: Two or more floors form a "Floor Family," where mutual acquaintance and support define the most basic unit of hall social relations.
• Hall O Camp: New and returning students spend several days together in team games, group competitions, evening galas, and more.
• Hall Dinner: An annual formal gathering for each hall, the most official collective event on the Hall Association's calendar.
• Hall Song: Some halls possess a unique song, sung collectively at hall events to foster a sense of belonging.
• Inter-Hall Games: Cross-hall sports or cultural competitions are occasionally organised between Hall Associations.
• Hall Birthday Parties/Celebrations: It is a common hall cultural practice for floormates to celebrate one another's birthdays.

These experiences, alongside "joining a jong" (serving as a student organisation officer), USFHK sports competitions, and the graduation design show, are among the cherished memories PolyU students cite as part of the "PolyU person" experience.

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# 13. The Impact of COVID-19 on Hall Life and the Return to Normality

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020–2022 had a significant impact on the operation of PolyU's halls.

• 2020–2021: Government pandemic prevention requirements brought restrictions on the use of shared hall facilities (gym, common rooms), alongside caps on occupancy numbers.
• Visitor Restrictions: Restrictions on visitors were drastically tightened, and cross-hall socialising was suspended.
• Hall Festival and Large-scale Events: The Hall Festival and O Camp for 2020–2021 were moved online or scaled down.
• Second Half of 2022: As Hong Kong's pandemic restrictions were progressively relaxed, hall activities and Hall Association operations gradually returned to normal.
• 2023–2024: Traditional activities such as the Hall Festival, O Camps, and Hall Dinners were fully reinstated.
• Capacity controls on halls were largely lifted in 2023, with the pre-pandemic tension between bed supply and demand re-emerging.

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# 14. Comparison with the Residential Systems of Other Hong Kong Universities

Student accommodation differs in character across Hong Kong's universities:

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# 15. Hall Culture and the Annual Calendar

Hall life revolves around a fixed annual calendar:

# Hall Disputes and Rule Enforcement

Hall rules are enforced jointly by the Hall Director (HD), the Resident Hall Tutors, and the Hall Association:

• Residents who violate rules (e.g., bringing unregistered overnight guests, excessive noise) may be summoned for a meeting by the Hall Association or the Hall Director.
• Serious breaches can lead to the termination of a resident's accommodation eligibility.
• Some Hall Associations operate a "Discipline Sub-committee" to maintain hall standards through a peer-based mechanism.

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# 16. Newly Completed and Future Planned Halls

# 16.1 The New Kowloon Tong Halls

According to Dot Dot News (2023-05-10)^※ and the Hong Kong Economic Times^※, PolyU is constructing new student halls on Tat Hong Road in Kowloon Tong, expected to provide more than 1,680 residential places and projected to be completed around 2028.

# 16.2 The New Chung Hau Street Halls (Ho Man Tin)

Another new residence is planned for Chung Hau Street in Ho Man Tin, also projected for completion around 2028, providing more than 1,200 residential places (as cited from the HKET and Dot Dot News reports above).

# 16.3 Bed-Rate Targets

After the two new hall projects are completed, PolyU's total number of residential places will increase significantly from the current figure of approximately 5,000. The University's goal is to progressively realise a "four years, two stays" model for undergraduates, guaranteeing two years of hall accommodation within a four-year degree and alleviating the current situation of chronic over-demand.

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# 17. From Hardware to Life: Preview of Part II

The sixteen sections above have set out the hardware specifications, systems, and annual calendar of PolyU's halls — the floor counts, the residential college application process, how points are tallied, and how things shut down and reopened during COVID. But the real weight of "living in hall" lies in the contrasting rhythms of life in Hung Hom and Ho Man Tin, in the Hall Associations that form the most immediate unit of student self-governance at PolyU, and in the debates about fairness when hall places are chronically scarce. Those topics are for Part II to unpack.

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