For years, it maintained very close ties with the Republic of China government, as many of the colleges' founders and subsequent senior staff were former officials or legislators in the pre-1949 Mainland Republic of China government. It was registered in the Republic of China's Ministry of Education as Chu Hai University () and was authorised to award degrees on behalf of the Republic of China Ministry of Education. It enjoyed status and recognition similar to that of universities in Taiwan. The college also received annual grants from the Republic of China and acted as the agent for administrating Taiwanese university entrance examinations for Hong Kong students wishing to pursue tertiary education in the Republic of China.