Over 330 medical freshmen don white coats at University of Hong Kong ceremony

The LKS Faculty of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong (HKU Medicine) held its annual White Coat Ceremony on Saturday, where professors personally draped the symbolic white coats over the shoulders of first-year medical students. 

A total of 330 freshmen took the solemn Oath of Geneva in front of professors, secondary school principals, family, and friends, marking the official beginning of their medical journeys. 

To align with the upcoming 140th anniversary of HKU Medicine, this year’s ceremony featured a brand-new alumnus robing segment under the theme of inheritance. Medical graduates returned as alumni to personally put the white coats on their incoming juniors, symbolizing a powerful, torch-passing moment of medical ethics and professional dedication from one generation to the next.

Dean shares lifelong wisdom through World Cup football and Churchill

The ceremony, held at the Grand Hall in the Lee Shau Kee Lecture Centre on the HKU Centennial Campus, featured an inspiring address by the Dean of HKU Medicine, Professor Lau Chak-sing. 

Lau urged the freshmen to always remember the profound weight carried by their white coats, which represents the pride and expectations of their families, the high standards of the medical profession, and the absolute trust of every future patient.

Lau also used his personal passion for football to share a broader life lesson, pointing to a recent World Cup where a small island nation defeated a defending champion. He reminded the students that as long as they build up their own inner strength, they will have no reason to fear formidable opponents or challenges. 

Comparing life to a football match, he noted that the journey would not always be filled with sunshine and would occasionally be overshadowed by darker times. 

Drawing inspiration from a famous wartime quote by former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Lau encouraged the new cohort to cherish moments of joy while refusing to lament times of sorrow. He emphasized that life must be embraced as a whole—both the good and the bad. 

He closed his speech with a hope that the students would wear their white coats proudly, fight for the bright side of humanity, and give the garments they wore a deeper, lasting meaning.

𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗽 ↓