The School of Life Sciences (SLS) was established in August 2010 by merging the Biochemistry (BCHE) and Biology (BIOL) Departments under the Faculty of Science.

Some of the active research areas in the School include plant molecular biology and biotechnology, protein structure and function, marine biology, environmental science, and food science and technology.

Research in plant and agricultural biotechnology has been funded by the Area of Excellence Scheme of the Hong Kong University Grants Council and more recently by the establishment of a State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology.