The Department of Building was established in 1984 to consolidate the importance of land development in the context of the Faculty.  It offered a three-year Bachelor of Building Program which was changed in 1985 to a four-year Bachelor of Science in Quantity Surveying Program.  This was followed by the re-naming of the Department of Building to the Department of Surveying in 1987. The Bachelor of Science in Quantity Surveying was superseded in 1988 by the Bachelor of Science in Surveying. The first Chair and Head of the Department of Surveying was Professor A. Walker who took up his post in 1985. Subsequently, Mr K.G. McKinnell was elected Head in 1992.

The Master of Urban Design (MUD) Degree in the Department of Architecture was implemented in 1988 to consolidate the growing interest in urban design issues.  This was a reflection of the raising profile of Hong Kong as a leading Asian city as well as a financial/economic center.