Professor Guo Zhongshi Steve is a dedicated and productive researcher with an exemplary track record as a devoted research supervisor. He has supervised an impressive number of Master of Arts, Master of Philosophy and PhD students and many of his supervisees have gone on to pursue advanced studies, including some who have become well established researchers and scholars in academia.

About 10 percent among the dozens of taught postgraduate students Professor Guo has supervised in the past decades have been motivated to opt for completion of a graduation thesis, which is entirely optional. All of these thesis writers applied for postgraduate research degrees upon graduation.

The supervision style of Professor Guo combines general dissemination of knowledge with tailored guidance for each student to address the individual need. He makes tireless effort in helping them grow both intellectually through interactive learning and personally through the path of critical thinking His P.R.I.D.E. method – P for pleasure, R for ripple, I for immersion, D for discipline, E for expansion – in supervising Research Postgraduate students has proven effective both inside and beyond the classroom.

For many years Professor Guo has engaged students in an informal book group he calls the “Fully Booked Club” in which he invites students to read and share their thoughts on academic and literary readings.

As the chair of the Research Postgraduate Studies Committee Professor Guo has devoted substantial efforts to restructuring the curricula of the programme in order to keep it abreast of the fast-changing media industry and environment. He has recently implemented a major revamp of the curriculum structure by adding a mandatory theory and methods course and a series of electives such as big data and machine learning.

Professor Guo has been proactive in mentoring junior faculty members both formally in teaching workshops and informally through interpersonal discussions. He regularly invites industry leaders to share their experiences with students and faculty members and high-calibre overseas researchers to deliver talks and seminars.

Professor Guo is well-known in the journalism and communication field in mainland China as well as Hong Kong. He has an established reputation akin to a brand name for HKBU’s School of Communication on numerous websites, especially the top ones dealing with overseas studies. His Chinese name brings up more than 100 entries on Google and Baidu, most of them on lectures and talks he has given throughout the nation.

The Selection Committee commends Professor Guo as a highly respected mentor in research supervision, and therefore recommends him for the President’s Award for Outstanding Performance in Research Supervision.