The awards this year amounted to more than 183,451 U.S. dollars, a big jump from last year and indicating more donors are interested in the program, said Glen Shive, director of the Hong Kong America Center.

The six doctoral candidates come from different universities, including Baptist University, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, City University and Chinese University of Hong Kong.

They will conduct dissertation research in American universities, with subjects ranging from corporate governance, music and multimedia data projection.

The three senior scholars come from Chinese University of Hong Kong and City University.

The Fulbright post-graduate research awards are initiated by the U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong and the Hong Kong America Center. The annual Fulbright research awards for senior scholars in arts, humanities and social sciences are jointly sponsored by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council and the U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong.