The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou), will start its very first semester in the Guangdong provincial capital in September, undertaking its mission to train new talent for the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Ma Shu, deputy director-general of the city government, said HKUST(Guangzhou) is the first cooperative university in Guangzhou and the first university in the city's Nansha district, which has become a new engine for economic growth.

"HKUST (Guangzhou) is expected to become a role model for higher education collaboration between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland, as well as a world-class university to train the right kind of talent for the development of the GBA and the entire country," Ma said at a news conference in Guangzhou on Monday.

It will serve as a research university for scientific and technological innovation, industrial upgrading and the high-quality development of the GBA, he said.

The university aims to integrate the high-quality education resources of the mainland and Hong Kong, Ma said, adding that by exploring cutting-edge and crossover disciplines it can build a new internal management system and mechanism to help cultivate innovative talent with an international perspective, for the development of the GBA.

The deputy director-general said the city government would continue to financially support the construction of the second phase of the university in the coming months.

Lionel Ni, president of HKUST(Guangzhou), said the university will adopt a "hub-like" academic structure which will replace the traditional notion of defined departments to help promote the cross-integration of disciplines and to vigorously develop emerging and frontier disciplines.

It is an initiative centered around global higher education, he said.

"This year, HKUST will admit master's and doctoral degree students in 15 majors," he said.

The university will start to admit undergraduate students in three majors in 2023 that will include artificial intelligence, data science and big data technology, and intelligent manufacturing engineering.

"Before it starts to recruit undergraduate students nationwide in 2024, new undergraduate students will be admitted from the four provinces of Guangdong, Henan, Shandong and Sichuan, plus the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions and Taiwan next year," he said.

Located at the mouth of the Pearl River in Nansha district, the university's first phase covers an area of almost half a square kilometer. The second phase includes teaching space and dormitories for undergraduates, a library expansion, technology transfer exhibition buildings, more laboratory space and academic exchange centers, he said.