HKMU Best Buddies Programme - Building Friendships with Intellectual Disabilities 2025/26 - Student Affairs Office

HKMU Best Buddies Programme - Building Friendships with Intellectual Disabilities 2025/26

Programme Background

Best Buddies is a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the lives of persons with intellectual disabilities by providing opportunities for one-to-one friendships between those with and without intellectual disabilities.

In February 2023, the Student Affairs Office collaborated with Fu Hong Society to launch this programme, encouraging HKMU students to build meaningful one-on-one friendships with persons with intellectual disabilities. Participants will have the opportunity to engage in diverse activities, fostering mutual learning while gaining deeper insights into their daily lives and the challenges they encounter.

Recruitment for the 2025/26 Best Buddies programme is now open! We warmly invite full-time undergraduate students with a passion for serving individuals with intellectual disabilities to join the programme. Sign up now to establish unforgettable and sincere friendships with the buddies from Ngai Shun Home*!

*Ngai Shun Home provides residential services for persons with moderate grade intellectual disabilities

Programme Content

Connect HKMU students with people with intellectual disabilities to show support and build long-lasting friendship
Promote social inclusion and to better understand the needs of people with Intellectual Disabilities
Train HKMU students to support people with intellectual disabilities to discover their potential, unleash their talents and guide them towards living fulfilling lives with dignity

Learning Objectives

Develop students’ civic & moral responsibility through community services or projects locally or globally with on-going guidance
Provide critical & structured reflection platforms to cultivate students’ positive personality traits and personal development for self-actualization, such as integrity & ethics, empathy, self-management, forgiveness, gratitude, respectfulness, capacity to love or be loved and kindness
Foster students’ self-understanding and nurture students’ social awareness and intelligence from diverse and open-minded perspectives on different local and/or global issues
Empower students to create positive social impact and benefit the community according to their service interests and personal abilities beyond academic boundaries

Join us and you can

Build genuine friendships with people with intellectual disabilities
Develop a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by individuals with intellectual disabilities while gaining greater awareness of social needs and enhancing your personal, social, and civic responsibilities.
Connect with like-minded HKMU students, broaden your social network, and enrich your university experience.
Receive a certificate from SAO for full attendance, which will give priority to participate in other student community engagement & service-learning overseas exchange programmes and training activities.

Who can join

All full-time undergraduate students who are passionate to serve people with intellectual disabilities are welcome to join. Cantonese proficiency is required for this programme. To complete the programme, participants are required to attend all training sessions and services.

Programme Schedule

*The dates of the activities are tentative and may be adjusted if necessary.

Service Period

Oct 2025 to May 2026

(The services are across the whole academic year)

Interview Arrangement

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend a face-to-face interview between 16 to 19 Sep.

Application

Submit your application through this LINK or before 10 Sep 2025 (Wednesday). Selected applicant(s) will be invited to attend an interview.

Enquiry

For enquiries, please contact Mr. John NG of SAO (hkng@hkmu.edu.hk / 2768 6753).