Widening Access to UK Universities

Access Abroad Hong Kong (formerly known as Project Access Hong Kong), or AAHK for short, is a non-profit, student-run organization operated by Hong Kong students studying at Oxford and Cambridge, striving to widen access to Oxford, Cambridge, and other top UK universities for less-privileged local students from Hong Kong. ​

We believe education can unlock unlimited possibilities for bright young minds, and as such are dedicated to widening access to Oxbridge and other UK universities beyond those from wealthy, privileged backgrounds.

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What do we do?

We offer free mentoring services for less-privileged Hong Kong students intending to apply to UK universities, with mentors (all current university students) from 12 of the top universities in the UK:

University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, the London School of Economics and Political Science, Imperial College London, University College London, King's College London, Durham University, University of St Andrews, the University of Edinburgh, University of Bath, the University of Warwick, and the University of Manchester.

Students who want to apply to any of these 12 universities can apply to our mentorship programme.

Our 1:1 free mentorship programme consists of 2 main parts:

1. University admissions:
Our mentors, many of which are past mentees and all of which have first-hand experience with the UCAS application system, guide our mentees with:

• academic personal statement feedback
• aptitude test strategies and practices
• academic interview techniques and mock interviews
• college choice (pros and cons of various colleges)
• reading lists, online resources, general questions, sharing on student life in the UK etc.​

​2. Scholarship applications:
​As the only organisation in Hong Kong providing mentorships for scholarship applications, our scholarship mentors (who have all been awarded scholarships themselves​), assist mentees with:

• detailed information on the requirements and selection criteria of different scholarships
• scholarship personal statement feedback
• scholarship interview techniques and mock interviews
• personal branding and profile building advice
• ​past experiences during the selection process

All our programmes are completely free-of-charge.

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Who can apply?

• Students that are planning to enter university in 2023
• These are mostly current form 5 students, but anyone entering university in 2023 can apply
• For example, form 6 students planning to take a gap year/ university students in Hong Kong planning to apply while studying/ form 4 students entering university a year early are all eligible
• Students must be from Hong Kong (we strongly prioritise students studying in local HKDSE secondary schools in Hong Kong; we consider other applications such as those from Hong Kong students that have recently moved overseas/ from Hong Kong students studying in non-local secondary schools on a case-by-case basis)
• We target those who need support the most; those from less-privileged schools/ households with less access to UK application resources will be heavily prioritised in the mentee selection process

That being said, we holistically review every single application, so if you are not sure, just apply!
We may also request additional information/ context from applicants, so remember to check your email!

We are currently accepting mentorship applications for 2023 university entry.
The deadline is July 3rd, 2022 (Sunday).
Click here to apply (https://mentorship.accessabroadhk.org/apply​); create an account on the online application portal, and then fill in all the required personal and academic information before submitting your application.

APPLY NOW

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Outreach Programs

Mini-Talks

​In 2022, the mini-talk series is finished. It was held online weekly from February to April, and nearly 400 students signed up!

The series consisted of 25 online webinars, including:

• 7 general webinars on UCAS, scholarships, personal statements, interviews, and student life in Oxbridge 
• 18 subject-specific webinars, breaking down each subject/course in Oxbridge in detail

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All talks were (and always will be) free.
Further talks will be held in early 2023, so stay tuned!

Mini-Courses

In 2021, we ran 4 Oxbridge mini-courses, which were held online from July to August. Over 50 students signed up!

There were 4 online courses in PPE (Politics, Philosophy, and Economics), Law, Biosciences, and Psychology, each including:

• Large-group lectures on introductory level content of the subject, to give participants an overview of different topics
• Small-group tutorials to further enhance participants' understanding of the subject through targeted discussions and in-depth feedback on essays/ problem sets

All courses were (and always will be) free.
Further courses will be run in mid 2022, so stay tuned!

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UCAS and Oxbridge Information Pack

Our team of Oxbridge mentors have compiled an Oxbridge info pack, including:

• UCAS admissions details and tips
• Application timeline and what to prepare
• Scholarship application criteria and advice
• Subject-specific information on courses in Oxbridge
• Personal experiences and advice from current Oxbridge students​

(Note: the info pack has not yet been updated for 2023 admissions, so for the most updated information be sure to search online and check the websites of your desired university/ course. If you have any specific questions, please do email us at contacts.accessabroad.hk@gmail.com and we will get back to you!)

Please click the image above (or use this link) to access the info pack.

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Stay Connected

​Updates on all our programmes and events, as well as tips for applications and sharings on university life, are posted regularly to our Facebook and Instagram pages. Like and follow our social media pages to stay in the loop!​
Facebook: www.facebook.com/AccessAbroadHK
Instagram: @accessabroad.hk

If you have any questions on our programmes or the UK university applications process in general, feel free to reach out to us either by Instagram/ Facebook direct messages or by emailing us.
We will reply as soon as we can!
Email: contacts.accessabroad.hk@gmail.com

Finally, if you are interested in collaborating with us (joint promotions/ programs, media interviews/ coverage, sponsorships/ donations/ other forms of support etc.), please do reach out to us via the below email:
Email: accessabroad.hk@gmail.com

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