The Interdiscplinary Programs Office (IPO) announced Mr Rulong Liu (fourth-year PhD student of Marine Environmental Science program) as the First Prize recipient of the IPO Best Research Award 2011-12 in the award ceremony held on 9 May 2012. 

The IPO Best Research Award was newly established with the support of the Provost's Office to recognize outstanding achievements by research postgraduate students who made the most original and influential research achievements outcome from their study that has been carried out mainly at HKUST. 

"The key objective of the Best Research Award is to foster the overall quality of research education in the University," says Prof Chi Ming Chan, the Director of IPO. 

The Selection Committee, comprising Prof Arthur Lau (Chair), Prof Jun Xia (Division of Biomedical Engineering) and Prof King Lun Yeung (Division of Environment), assessed candidates on the research impact and output on evidence-based criteria based on candidates' work done at HKUST. 

Among the nominees, Mr Rulong Liu, the fourth-year PhD candidate of the Marine Environmental Science program, was selected as the recipient of the IPO Best Research Award 2011-12. Rulong has published two first-authored papers in two prestige journals, Water Research (Impact Factor 4.9) and Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology (Impact Factor 3.2) on the source tracking for Bacteroidales, fecal pollution indicators, in the warm subtropical coastal waters. 

The recommendation from Prof Stanley Lau, Rulong's supervisor, highlighted the impact of Rulong's work: 'Source tracking is an emerging field. Rulong's work is the first of its kind in the warmer regions in the world'. 

Rulong gave a presentation on his research and shared the findings with other research postgraduate students of IPO at the ceremony. 

More about IPO Best Research Award

The IPO Best Research Award accepts both self-nominations by students and nominations by supervisors. All research postgraduate students who are registered students of IPO in the award year, including those who graduate in Spring semester of the award year, are eligible to apply. Nomination is normally invited in the Spring semester of an award year. 

Details of the award can be found from the following webpage (restricted for IPO faculty, staff and students only): https://ais.hkust.edu.hk/intranet/Best_Research_Award_Guideline_2011-12.pdf