A Hong Kong professor’s sexist views have been laid bare. That’s good

Por Alice Wu — South China Morning Post – News feed

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Opinion Alice Wu A Hong Kong professor’s sexist views have been laid bare. That’s good

Students speaking up against an academic’s reductionist analysis of love and marriage is a welcome sight – better yet if it sparks a broader, needed debate

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Chinese University associate professor Terence Chong advised young women not to pursue a PhD, and instead invest in their looks, in a talk at a university event last week. Photo: Jelly Tse

Alice Wu Alice Wu is a political consultant and a former associate director of the Asia Pacific Media Network at UCLA. Published: 4:30pm, 27 Sep 2026 Love is a many-splendoured thing – except when seen through the lens of economists, apparently. Prominent economist Terence Chong Tai-leung, a Chinese University of Hong Kong associate professor, confirmed this in an address last week to the university’s New Asia College.

In a speech titled “How to invest in your life?”, he basically told the female students at the event that they were wasting their time on academic achievements, since women must aim to marry for money. Don’t pursue a PhD, he said, as a woman’s youth is precious. Invest in your looks instead, he urged.

It’s no wonder backlash erupted. His speech was a slap in the face of the men and women who have been campaigning for gender equality and fighting the patriarchal stereotypes that hold women back.

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Fonte: South China Morning Post – News feed