Electrochemist Liu Jiawei moves from Singapore to Hong Kong to start her own lab

For materials scientist and chemist Liu Jiawei, moving to Hong Kong supported her pivot into launching her own research group.

After a decade immersed in Singapore’s research ecosystem, Liu sought a transition that would keep her closer to family in mainland China while maintaining an international, high-standard research environment.

Now establishing her laboratory at City University of Hong Kong (CityU), two years after her move, Liu said Hong Kong’s academic landscape operated on an independent principal investigator model, where researchers enjoyed substantial autonomy in steering their own labs and research directions.

At the same time, the city strongly encouraged cross-group collaboration, with frequent joint projects among various research teams.

“Singapore and Hong Kong are quite similar in their research environment and academic atmosphere. I chose Hong Kong because I want to stay closer to my family in mainland China and develop my career in a city that offers a similar research landscape to Singapore,” Liu said, pointing to their diversity and connections to both mainland China and the West.

She completed her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and earned her PhD in materials science and engineering there in 2021.