Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
LCQ8: Supporting students with special educational needs in post-secondary institutions Question:
It is learnt that the community has all along been concerned about whether various post-secondary institutions can adequately support students with special educational needs (SEN) in terms of their learning needs, so as to equip them for pursuing further studies and joining the workforce. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the number of SEN students studying in the eight universities funded by the University Grants Committee (UGC) (the eight universities) in the current academic year, together with a breakdown by type of SEN, including but not limited to hearing impairment, visual impairment, physical disability, and specific learning difficulties;
(2) as the Government has indicated in its reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on November 8 last year that the UGC further allocates additional resources to the eight universities between 2022 and 2025 by providing an additional special funding of $67.5 million for the Special Grant to Enhance the Support for Students with Special Educational Needs (the Special Grant), which seeks to enable the universities to (i) enhance the teaching and learning experience of SEN students, (ii) strengthen staff training, and (iii) promote campus integration, whether the Government knows the actual amount of funding granted to each university, the expenditure on items (i) to (iii), as well as the relevant specific measures and their effectiveness respectively;
(3) whether it knows if the UGC will extend or regularise the Special Grant in the future to continuously implement one of the strategic recommendations of the Persons with Disabilities and Rehabilitation Programme Plan, which is to provide adequate resources and ensure equal opportunities for SEN students to receive higher education or pursue further studies; if the UGC will, of the estimated relevant annual expenditure; if not, the reasons for that;
(4) as some organisations and their assistance seekers have relayed that some university students need to engage sign language interpretation services to support their studies, but due to limited study hours funded by their universities, rather exorbitant sign language interpretation costs have to be borne by such students in their three or four-year undergraduate programmes, whether the authorities will require the eight universities to strengthen the support for such students and ensure that the relevant measures are put in place in a proper and effective manner, so that no such students will be unable to complete their studies or pursue further studies because of lack of means; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(5) whether the authorities will consider offering dedicated post-secondary programmes that are suitable and able to provide support for SEN students, complemented by related all-round support services (including but not limited to sign language interpretation), so that they can equip themselves and join the workforce; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
The eight University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universities have all along been making special teaching arrangements and providing support services to students with special educational needs (SEN).
Our replies to Dr the Hon Chow Man-kong’s questions are as follows:
(1) In the past three academic years (AY), the numbers of full-time UGC-funded sub-degree and undergraduate students with SEN (Note 1) are tabulated below by their types of SEN –
Type of SENAYAY(provisional figures)language impairmentNote 2: Including different types of disabilities, visceral disability /chronic illness, etc.
We do not have the relevant figures for the 2024/25 AY for the time being.
(2) and (3) To assist students with SEN in pursuing UGC-funded programmes and adapt to campus life, as well as promoting an inclusive culture, the UGC has launched the Special Grant for Enhancing Support for Students with SEN (the Special Grant) since 2015 to provide additional resources for universities to take forward three key objectives, i.e. (i) improving the educational experience of students with SEN, (ii) enhancing staff training and (iii) promoting an inclusive campus. The subsidy scope of the Special Grant is comprehensive, with specific initiatives covering professional services such as educational psychology services, development of e-learning platforms, enhancement of awareness of students with SEN through seminars, workshops, online resources, etc, implementation of integrated education, improvement of campus accessibility, and provision of additional assistive tools for students with SEN, etc.
With the support and efforts of the stakeholders over the years, the Special Grant has been effective in supporting students with SEN and promoting a caring culture among staff and peers. According to the results of surveys conducted by the UGC-funded universities among students with SEN in the 2022/23 AY, the average student satisfaction rating was 4.1 (i.e. above the “satisfactory” level) on a five-point scale. The UGC has also noted the positive impact of the Special Grant on the UGC-funded universities in deepening their institutional changes and addressing the needs of students with SEN in a more organised and systematic manner.
In view of its effectiveness, the UGC has further increased the funding to $67.5 million in the 2022/23 – 2024/25 (2022-25) triennium to extend and enhance the support for students with SEN, and to expand the scope of funding to cover employment support, etc. The special grant for the 2022-25 triennium was allocated primarily with reference to the average numbers of students with SEN enrolled in full-time publicly-funded sub-degree and undergraduate programmes at the UGC-funded universities in the past five AYs. Allocations of the special grant to the UGC-funded universities are set out in the table below –
UGC-funded universities2022-25 triennium （$ million）Science and Technology Regarding the expenditure in different areas, the UGC-funded universities will formulate appropriate support strategies and allocate budgets having regard to their actual circumstances. Overall, the UGC-funded universities deploy about 40 per cent of the funding for staff and general expenses, while about 50 per cent of the remaining funding is deployed to enhance the learning experience of students, 20 per cent to strengthen staff training, and 30 per cent to promote an inclusive campus.
Recurrent funding for the UGC-funded universities is provided on a triennial basis. Like other funding schemes, the existing special grant is aligned with the current funding cycle (i.e. the 2022-25 triennium). For the arrangements of the next triennium, the UGC will continue to communicate with the funded universities closely, and consider the means for supporting the universities as they continue to provide appropriate assistance for students with SEN in a timely manner.
(4) Under the existing arrangements, the UGC-funded universities may make use of the special grant to support students with hearing impairment, including hiring staff to provide sign language interpretation service to support their learning. The UGC believes that the funded universities will balance the needs of different students with SEN and deploy the special grant appropriately to render suitable support, including those with hearing impairment. Meanwhile, with the rapid advancement in technology, the UGC encourages the funded universities to actively explore the use of new technologies and adopt various technological solutions to provide more comprehensive support to students in need in a more cost-effective manner.
(5) Under the existing policy on integrated education, the Education Bureau advocates “equal opportunities and enhancing students’ learning having regard to the uniqueness of individual students”. With suitable support and assistance from institutions, all students are provided with equal learning opportunities such that students with SEN can overcome their learning barriers and join the mainstream campus life together with others. On the one hand, the UGC is making use of the special grant to motivate the UGC-funded universities to provide students with SEN with the necessary support, barrier-free facilities and information such that they can learn in the same way as their peers. On the other hand, the special grant promotes an inclusive campus through various means to advocate the sharing of campus life among teachers, students and those with SEN such that they can learn to respect, understand and accept each other, thereby cultivating whole-person development in a wider context. At the same time, with the special grant for the 2022-25 triennium, the UGC has further expanded the scope of funding to cover activities and projects that will help students to join the society and develop their careers in the future. This involves encouraging the universities to provide more comprehensive, targeted and practical support to students with SEN, and to enable them to plan and prepare for their career paths upon graduation as early as possible during their studies. Apart from the special grant, the UGC-funded universities could make use of the block grant to take forward integrated education on their campuses. Issued at HKT 14:15
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
LCQ11: Supply of hostel places of post-secondary institutions Question:
The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (the CPC Central Committee) adopted the Resolution of the CPC Central Committee on Further Deepening Reform Comprehensively to Advance Chinese Modernization, in which support for Hong Kong’s position to become an international hub for high-calibre talents was stated. Moreover, last year’s Policy Address proposed to build Hong Kong into an international hub for post-secondary education by increasing the admission quota of non-local students to Government-funded post-secondary institutions. According to a recent report published by an organisation, it was envisaged that by 2028, the shortfall in hostel places for students of local post-secondary institutions would further increase to some 120 000. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has projected and compiled statistics on the respective (i) numbers, (ii) proportions and (iii) hostel application proportions of local and non-local students in post-secondary institutions in the coming five years; given that the Government has, starting from the current academic year, increased the admission quota of non-local students to Government-funded post-secondary institutions to 40 per cent, of the current nationality distribution of the non-local students;
(2) whether it knows (i) the respective proportions of local and non-local students in post-secondary institutions who were successfully allocated with hostel places upon application and (ii) their terms of hostel residence in the past 10 years; whether various post-secondary institutions have set a limit on the term of hostel residence; if a limit has been set, of the details (set out in a table), and whether the Government has plans to extend the term of hostel residence for students;
(3) given that the Government established in 2018 the Hostel Development Fund with some $10.3 billion to provide six University Grants Committee-funded universities with an additional 13 473 hostel places, whether it has compiled statistics on the current number of hostel places provided by universities across the territory; of the Government’s projected growth in the supply of university hostel places in the coming five years, and the shortfall in hostel places when set against students’ demand for accommodation; whether it will consider injecting funds into the Fund again in the future; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(4) whether it will study allocating idle lands in the vicinity to the post-secondary institutions concerned for the construction of academic buildings or hostels, or consider relaxing the plot ratio of land adjacent to universities in rural areas to allow for greater flexibility in university expansion; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(5) given that as indicated in the paper submitted by the Government to the Subcommittee on Matters Relating to the Development of the Northern Metropolis of this Council in April this year, 19 post-secondary institutions had participated in the engagement activity of the Northern Metropolis University Town (NMUT) and submitted proposals, whether the Government has estimated the number of post-secondary institutions that can be accommodated by the NMUT, and whether sites have been reserved for hostel purposes; if so, of the expected number of hostel places to be provided; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
The 2023 Policy Address stated building Hong Kong into an international post-secondary education hub and a cradle of future talents. The 2024 Policy Address also announced further measures to nurture future talents and to create the “Study in Hong Kong” brand. At the same time, the Government will set up the Committee on Education, Technology and Talents to be chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration. The Committee will co-ordinate and promote the integrated development of education, science and technology and talent, so as to enhance convergence and coherence and formulate policies to promote the synergistic development of nurturing talents, gathering talents and science and technology, as well as to facilitating international high-calibre talents to stay in Hong Kong. Developing Hong Kong into an international post-secondary education hub is also one of the three major strategies. My reply to the various parts of the Hon Benson Luk’s question is as follows:
(1) The enrolment ceiling of non-local students in University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded taught programmes has been doubled from a level equivalent to 20 per cent of local student places in the 2023/24 academic year (AY) to 40 per cent with effect from the 2024/25 AY. There are no restrictions on research postgraduate programmes. It is important to note that all non-local students pursuing UGC-funded taught programmes do not receive public funding, and the number of such non-local students is accounted for separately from local student places. This ensures that the study opportunities for local students will not be affected.
In the 2023/24 AY, the total number of local students pursuing full-time locally-accredited publicly-funded and self-financing programmes was about 158 300, whereas there were about 64 200 non-local students. As far as UGC-funded taught programmes (i.e. undergraduate, sub-degree and taught post-graduate programmes) are concerned, the actual number of non-local students was about 14 900 while that of local students was about 76 400; the proportion of non-local students was about 19 per cent. The non-local students come from over 100 places of origin. In the 2023/24 AY, the numbers of students by study levels and by places of origin are tabulated below:
Programme types As for student hostels, the relative proportion of applications from local students and non-local students of the UGC-funded universities at the beginning of the 2023/24 AY is 55 per cent and 45 per cent respectively. Looking ahead, we envisage that universities will continue to take into account their capacity in promoting the advantages of our higher education sector around the world using the “Study in Hong Kong” brand, with a view to gradually admitting more non-local students to study in Hong Kong. Self-financing programmes will also flourish. As our post-secondary education sector in Hong Kong continues to enhance quality and expand capacity, the corresponding demand for student hostels will increase. We are delighted to explore flexible and innovative ways with the institutions and different stakeholders to increase the supply of student hostels.
(2) Based on the data provided by the UGC-funded universities, the success rate of local students and non-local students in hostel applications in the past ten AYs (2014/15 to 2023/24 AY) is at Annex. We do not maintain information on the terms of residence of local students and non-local students.
The specific arrangements for hostel allocation are formulated by the UGC-funded universities and there is generally no upper limit set for the terms of residence. The universities are encouraged to reflect the priorities of different groups of students for hostel accommodation in the allocation mechanism, having regard to the practical needs and educational benefits, while maintaining suitable flexibility to ensure that resources of student hostels are utilised properly.
(3) and (4) Under the Hostel Development Fund (HDF), the UGC-funded universities are provided with a capital grant covering up to 75 per cent of the construction costs for 15 student hostel projects to provide a total of about 13 500 additional hostel places, with a target for gradual completion by 2027. Based on the data provided by the UGC-funded universities, the total number of hostel places (including publicly-funded, privately-funded and temporary hostel places) available for allocation in September 2023 was around 37 600. Taking into account the future supply from the projects under HDF, the number of hostel places will gradually increase to around 50 000 in the coming few years, to cater for the needs of students, including those arising from the additional intake.
Under the prevailing mechanism, the universities may apply to the Government for granting additional sites for campus expansion if they have strong justifications and specific proposals, which will then be considered by the bureaux and departments concerned from relevant perspectives such as policy, resources, practical circumstances, planning and land administration, etc. The universities could also as necessary apply for a relaxation of development parameters for the proposed sites, including building height restrictions and plot ratios, etc, which will be processed in accordance with the statutory procedures and established arrangements by the Town Planning Board and relevant departments.
To improve hostel facilities, the Chief Executive announced in the 2024 Policy Address that the Government would launch a pilot scheme to streamline the processing of applications in relation to planning, lands and building plans, so as to encourage the market to convert hotels and other commercial buildings into student hostels on a self-financing and privately-funded basis, increasing the supply of student hostels. The Government will also make available suitable sites for the private sector to build new hostels, having regard to market demand. The Development Projects Facilitation Office under the Development Bureau will provide one-stop advisory and facilitation services for these projects.
(5) The Government has earmarked over 80 hectares of land in the Northern Metropolis for the Northern Metropolis University Town (NMUT), and will encourage local post-secondary institutions to introduce more branded programmes, research collaboration and exchange projects with renowned Mainland and overseas institutions in a flexible and innovative manner. We will retain flexibility in the planning process to facilitate the development of student hostels.
Relevant Government departments are still discussing the site planning of the NMUT at this stage. We plan to publish the Northern Metropolis University Town Development Conceptual Framework in the first half of 2026. Issued at HKT 15:16
Suspected cases of using a false address for POA applications may be reported to the School Places Allocation Section by calling its hotline at 2832 7700.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
LCQ5: Nurturing foreign language talents Question:
In 2018, the State President stated at the National Conference on Education that vigorous efforts should be made to nurture international talents proficient in foreign languages and adept at Chinese-foreign negotiations and communications. There are views that as the country’s super connector and super value-adder, as well as the premier international financial centre connecting the country and the Middle East market, Hong Kong needs to nurture a large pool of foreign language talents. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) when Government officials make overseas visits and when the Government releases videos and hands out publications overseas to promote Hong Kong, whether local mother tongues of the relevant places have been used as the medium of communication; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(2) as it is learnt that there are a number of language universities in the country, such as Beijing Foreign Studies University, which is approved to teach more than a hundred foreign languages, whether the Government will study allocating more resources to tertiary institutions to strengthen training in foreign languages other than English, or establishing foreign language universities drawing on the models of the Mainland, with a view to nurturing multilingual talents in public and private organisations, so that they can tell the good stories of Hong Kong in different languages; and
(3) whether it will study enhancing the existing “biliterate and trilingual” policy by turning it into a “triliterate and quadrilingual” policy?
Reply:
President,
Hong Kong is a cosmopolitan city. In recent years, various national strategies have even brought about tremendous development opportunities for Hong Kong, which require us to strengthen exchanges and co-operation with the Mainland and overseas regions and countries by capitalising on our advantage of “linkage with our Motherland and close connection to the world”. To enhance our international competitiveness and strengthen our position as an international post-secondary education hub, we have been striving to nurture talents who are biliterate and trilingual, and proficient in other languages.
Having consulted the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau and the Information Services Department (ISD), I would like to reply to the Hon Benson Luk’s questions as follows:
(1) Currently, in taking forward overseas promotion work, the overseas Economic and Trade Offices (ETOs) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government and Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) will make appropriate arrangements taking into account the common languages of the relevant places. For instance, apart from the English version of the relevant ETOs’ websites, languages commonly used in the countries/regions under their respective purview are also available, e.g. Japanese, Thai, German, Arabic to facilitate local people in understanding the information disseminated by ETOs. Also, for meetings between officials of the HKSAR Government and local officials/representatives of the political and business sectors and preparation of relevant promotional materials, the ETOs concerned will arrange interpretation and prepare and issue the relevant promotion materials in local languages as appropriate.
In addition, to facilitate investors from around the world to understand the latest information about Hong Kong’s business environment, InvestHK’s website is available in a number of major languages, including simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, English, Japanese, Spanish, French, Italian, as well as Arabic, which has been newly added. Separately, InvestHK’s promotional videos are mainly in English and Putonghua. Depending on the origin of individual successful case studies, subtitles may be available in the local language. As for InvestHK’s client meetings and promotional materials, Putonghua and simplified Chinese are used on the Mainland, while English and the local language where necessary are used in overseas markets. Interpretation will also be arranged at investment promotion seminars.
On external promotion, the ISD produces a series of creative contents in multiple languages for placement in overseas and Mainland cities through digital and social media platforms, as well as outdoor advertising, in the form of short videos and banner advertisements to tell the good stories of Hong Kong. These creative contents are available in Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Thai, Vietnamese, etc. The ISD also translated and printed the promotional booklet entitled “HK Connect” into foreign languages such as Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Malay and Thai for distribution to target recipients at promotional activities during senior officials’ overseas visits.
Moreover, the ISD has held the “Immersive Hong Kong” promotional roving exhibitions in Jakarta, Indonesia; Bangkok, Thailand; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and Guangzhou, China since July 2023. It will also be staged in Dubai, the Middle East next month. In addition to English, the exhibition information is also available in the local languages of each stop to enhance the publicity effect.
(2) The eight University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universities have all along been making flexible use of their resources to offer a wide range of publicly-funded programmes with regard to their respective roles and positioning, as well as providing diversified learning opportunities for students in response to market demands. Learning foreign languages can help students to understand multiculturalism and strengthen their connections with different parts of the world, thereby enhancing their competitiveness in entering the workforce, pursuing further studies or starting their own businesses in the future. University education also aims to encourage students to acquire knowledge and skills in different fields, and nurture the high-calibre talents required by different industries, so as to inject impetus into the development of Hong Kong.
In recent years, the eight UGC-funded universities have offered as many as 12 contemporary foreign languages for learning, including Arabic, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Kiswahili, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Spanish and Thai. They also offer a range of specialised programmes majoring in individual foreign languages or cultures for students who aspire to become professionals in relevant fields in the future. As for students pursuing undergraduate programmes in other areas such as engineering technology, business or social sciences, a number of universities also offer minor options or foreign language courses as free electives for interested students to pursue having regard to their personal aspirations and abilities. In addition, a number of self-financing institutions at present offer post-secondary programmes related to different foreign languages and relevant elective subjects according to market demand.
The above arrangements for major, minor and free electives enable students to study foreign languages having regard to their learning objectives in an appropriate manner. The existing arrangements meet practical needs with flexibility; hence the Government has no plans to set up a foreign language university. Nevertheless, we will continue to encourage the UGC-funded universities to provide students with opportunities to learn foreign languages, and through various avenues, such as student exchange programmes and experiential learning activities, enable students to gain exposure to the cultures of more places, broaden their horizons, seize Hong Kong’s unique advantages, and be better prepared for their future development.
(3) Over the years, the Government has been collaborating with the Standing Committee on Language Education and Research, other advisory bodies and stakeholders to enable the Hong Kong people, particularly students and working adults, to become biliterate and trilingual, through sponsoring and implementing various measures using the Language Fund. Moreover, the Education Bureau (EDB) endeavours to develop students’ multilingual competence, enabling them to make life planning based on their own interests, abilities and aspirations, and to connect to the world. Over the years, the EDB has offered “other languages” courses (Note 1) (Category C of the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination) for senior secondary students to study as an elective subject. As announced in the 2024 Policy Address, the EDB will implement a pilot scheme to invite schools to apply for additional resources to provide opportunities for junior secondary students to learn “other languages” (Note 2), in order to facilitate a stronger articulation in their learning of “other languages” as an elective subject at the senior secondary level.
Thank you, President.
Note 1: The EDB subsidises schools to offer courses of the six “other languages”, i.e. French, German, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and Urdu, for secondary four to six students.
Note 2: Schools can use the funding to offer junior secondary courses of the six designated “other languages” (i.e. French, German, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and Urdu), which are the senior secondary elective subjects. Arabic and Russian could also be considered. Issued at HKT 15:40
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
LCQ16: Supporting local students to pursue further studies in Mainland (1) of the following information in relation to Hong Kong students pursuing further studies in the Mainland in each of the past three years and this year to date (set out in the table below): (i) the number of Hong Kong students studying in Mainland higher education institutions and research institutes, (ii) the number of applicants for the Mainland University Study Subsidy Scheme (MUSSS), (iii) the number of subsidy recipients under the MUSSS, (iv) the amount of subsidy involved in the MUSSS, (v) the number of applicants for the Scheme for Admission of Hong Kong Students to Mainland Higher Education Institutions (the Admission Scheme), and (vi) the number of students admitted to Mainland institutions through the Admission Scheme;
Year(2) apart from organising large-scale Mainland Higher Education Expo every year, what regular measures are taken by the authorities to introduce secondary school students information about further studies in the Mainland and the MUSSS, and whether such introductions are made in life planning activities and relevant organisations are invited to hold seminars at schools; if so, of the number of hours and frequency of such activities in each of the past three years; if not, the reasons for that;
(3) as some Hong Kong students pursuing further studies in the Mainland have relayed that they were unaware of the MUSSS and therefore did not apply for the subsidy, whether the authorities will step up publicity and promotion work on the MUSSS and conduct regular surveys on Hong Kong students to understand how much they know about pursuing further studies in the Mainland;
(4) as it is learnt that Hong Kong students may need accreditation of academic qualifications, no matter whether they return to Hong Kong or stay in the Mainland for development after graduation, but there are still difficulties in accreditation of academic qualifications in both Hong Kong and the Mainland, such as the requirement of a manual process for accreditation and registration of academic qualifications, which cannot be possible with the number as printed in the Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents, as relayed by some Hong Kong students pursuing further studies in the Mainland, whether the authorities will consider negotiating with relevant Mainland authorities to speed up the procedures and processes for accreditation of academic qualifications in both Hong Kong and the Mainland and work towards “mutual recognition of registration of academic qualifications” between Hong Kong and the Mainland in the long term; and
(5) along with increase in the number of Hong Kong students pursuing further studies in the Mainland, whether the authorities have invested additional resources to support their needs and considered expanding the scope of the MUSSS to include postgraduate programmes; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
Academic year(1) According to the information provided by the Ministry of Education, including the numbers of undergraduate and graduate students. (2) As of January 2022 (3) As of December 2022 (4) As of December 2023 (5) Since the application period for the 2024/25 academic year just ended in September 2024, applications for this academic year are currently being processed, and the figures are not available yet.
(2) and (3) The Education Bureau (EDB) has been publicising and promoting the Scheme for Admission of Hong Kong Students to Mainland Higher Education Institutions (Admission Scheme) and the MUSSS through multiple channels, including school circulars, press releases, the EDB’s website, social media, newspaper advertisements and seminars. Every year, the EDB writes to principals of all local secondary schools to invite schools to participate in the School Principal Nomination Scheme under the Admission Scheme, to introduce the MUSSS to eligible students who plan to study on the Mainland, and distribute posters and leaflets of the MUSSS to secondary schools. In addition, the EDB organises life planning education seminars for senior secondary school students, teachers and parents every year to introduce the details of the Admission Scheme and the MUSSS, as well as the situation of studying on the Mainland. In the past three academic years (i.e., the 2021/22 to 2023/24 academic years), the EDB has organised a total of five related seminars for senior secondary school students, teachers and parents.Issued at HKT 12:20
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
LCQ19: Policy on development of international schools Question:
There are views that Hong Kong is facing a demographic problem brought by a low birth rate and the persistent under-enrolment in schools on the one hand, while the number of applications for late admission of dependent children of arrivals under various talent admission schemes has increased sharply on the other, posing new challenges to the supply and demand of school places. Meanwhile, the policy of allocating vacant school premises/school sites for the development of international schools has further affected the allocation of local education resources. Regarding the policy on the development of international schools, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of applications received and approved by the authorities from school sponsoring bodies of international schools applying for operation in Hong Kong in each of the past five years; the factors on which the authorities based in approving the applications from international schools for operation;
(2) under the policy of allocating vacant school premises/school sites for the development of international schools, of the criteria by which the Government allocates sites for the development of international schools; how it ensures that the provision of sites for the development of international schools does not undermine local education resources at the same time; and
(3) whether it knows the respective requirements for local and non-local students under the enrolment policies of international schools and private schools newly applying for operation; how the Government ensures that, after the conversion of aided schools to private schools, sufficient aided school places can still be maintained in Hong Kong to uphold educational equity?
Reply:
President,
The education system in Hong Kong provides parents with diversified and high-quality choices. The Government’s policy objective is to provide 12 years’ free primary and secondary education to all children through public sector schools. Apart from publicly-funded schools, private schools in Hong Kong have been playing a unique role in offering local and non-local curricula according to their mission. International schools belong to the private school sector and operate on a self-financing and market-driven basis. In general, they are not subsidised by public funds for capital costs and daily operation.
The Government is committed to supporting the development of a vibrant international school sector, mainly to meet the demand for school places from non-local families living in Hong Kong and families coming to Hong Kong for work or investment. This policy objective is crucial in attracting and retaining talent in support of Hong Kong’s development as an international centre on finance, business, innovation and technology, education and culture, and reinforcing Hong Kong’s role as an international cosmopolitan with global connectivity.
Regarding the question asked by Hon Tang Fei, the reply is as follows:
(1) and (2) There are 54 international schools (including one special school) in Hong Kong. There is no newly established international school in the past five years. In the 2023/24 school year, international schools admitted about 42 100 students, accounting for 6.4 per cent of primary and secondary students in Hong Kong. There are two ways to set up an international school in Hong Kong:
(i) Application for registration as a private school first and seek recognition as an international school: School sponsoring body may identify private land and/or school premises in Hong Kong for operation of school and apply to the Education Bureau (EDB) for registration as private school. After the private school has been in operation for a certain period of time, the school operator may then seek the EDB’s recognition of the school as an international school subject to its fulfillment of relevant requirements. The start-up requirements include at least 70 per cent of the school places allocated to non-local students (Note), a proven track record of school operation and full accreditation from an established accreditation body, a sustainable financial plan.
(ii) Participation in the School Allocation Exercise (SAE): The supply of international school places is planned on a territory-wide basis. The EDB commissions a consultancy study from time to time on the provision of international school places at primary and secondary levels in Hong Kong. When there is a projected shortfall of international school places, the Government will allocate greenfield sites or vacant school premises (VSPs) for international school use through an open and competitive bidding mechanism as appropriate, to increase the number of international school places. It has been 10 years since the last allocation of greenfield sites and VSPs to international schools (in 2014). In the light of the overwhelming response to various talent admission schemes in the past two years, the EDB is conducting an SAE to allocate two VSPs offering some school places in meeting any short-term surge in education needs of dependant children of incoming talent from both the Mainland and overseas.
All along, the vast majority of education expenditure and land resources have been allocated to publicly-funded schools. For example, since the implementation of the existing SAE mechanism in 1999, the Government has allocated 156 school sites or VSPs for public sector primary and secondary schools. During the same period, the Government allocated only 16 school sites or VSPs for international school development. Since 2017, the EDB has sought funding approval from the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council and completed a total of 37 school building projects during the period, all of which are public sector school projects except one was an international school redevelopment project.
(3) Private schools, which operate on a self-financing and market-driven basis, may set their own school-based admission requirements and procedures for admitting students (including non-local students who have been approved to study or reside in Hong Kong). The requirement on the percentage of non-local students to be admitted applies to the international schools operated by the English Schools Foundation and the new campuses of international schools which entered into a service agreement with the EDB upon allocation of school premises or sites since 2007. These schools/campuses were required to enrol no less than 50 per cent of non-local students, and the percentage has been raised to 70 per cent by the EDB since 2009, in accordance with the terms of the service agreements. As Hong Kong has returned to normalcy and has been actively attracting more foreign investment and talent to the territory, the EDB expects that the number of non-local students, including those from the Mainland and overseas, to be admitted by international schools will increase gradually.
The EDB will continue to closely monitor the number of newly-arrived children and the demand for school places of the dependants of various talent schemes, and to conduct dynamic assessment of the demand for and supply of school places, as well as reserve sufficient school places in public sector schools for eligible school-age children. Should an existing publicly-funded school wish to cease operation and convert into a private school, it has to apply to the EDB for change of its mode of operation and for registration. The EDB will consider a basket of factors, including the lease conditions and restrictions on the use of the land of the school, curriculum planning, class structure, staff establishment, etc, to ensure that the school is capable of providing quality education.
Note: Local students refer to those who are Hong Kong permanent residents (with the right of abode in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR)) and do not have any valid passport other than HKSAR Passport. Students not covered by this definition are all regarded as non-local students. Issued at HKT 12:37
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
LCQ12: Pursuing studies at local universities Question:
On pursuing studies at local universities, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of persons admitted to the bachelor’s degree programmes of local universities through the Joint University Programmes Admissions System (JUPAS) and the Non-Joint University Programmes Admissions System (Non-JUPAS) on the basis of their Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE) results in each of the past three years, and set out in Table 1 a breakdown by their HKDSE results; Table 1
Total grade points in the best five subjects(2) of the respective numbers of persons sitting for the HKDSE in 2022 to 2025 as private candidates, and set out in Table 2 a breakdown by (i) Hong Kong permanent residents, (ii) Hong Kong residents not being permanent residents and (iii) non-Hong Kong residents; Table 2
Year(3) of the distribution of results of candidates sitting for the HKDSE as private candidates in the past three years, and set out in Table 3 a breakdown by (i) Hong Kong permanent residents, (ii) Hong Kong residents not being permanent residents and (iii) non-Hong Kong residents; and Table 3
Total grade points in the best five subjects(4) among the students admitted to the bachelor’s degree programmes of local universities through JUPAS over the past three years, of the number of private candidates holding dependent visas (i.e. document category LS5)?
Reply:
President,
(1) The numbers of students admitted to first-year first-degree programmes funded by the University Grants Committee (UGC) through the Joint University Programmes Admissions System (JUPAS) and non-JUPAS with the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE) results in the past three years are set out below:
Year(As at October 28, 2024)(3) The Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority does not keep individual statistics on the results of private candidates, and the statistics do not include personal data such as the nationalities of the candidates and whether they are permanent residents of Hong Kong.
(4) The Education Bureau does not collect data on whether students admitted to UGC-funded programmes through JUPAS are holders of dependant visas or whether they are HKDSE private candidates. Issued at HKT 11:15
Besides, for undergraduate programmes, only students receiving/received their formal school education in Hong Kong are eligible. This would cover all Hong Kong students who receive/received senior secondary education in Hong Kong, including those studying/studied local and non-local curricula in Hong Kong. For postgraduate programmes, students who have obtained their undergraduate qualifications either in or outside Hong Kong are eligible, provided that they meet the criteria set out in (i) and (ii) above.
The HKSES will adopt a merit-based approach to selection, targeting the best and most outstanding Hong Kong students who are admitted to world renowned universities and programmes. Selection will be based on the applicants’ academic achievements, and other attributes such as leadership qualities and potential, contribution and commitment to the Hong Kong, etc. The applicants’ plan to return to work and contribute to Hong Kong after completion of studies will also be considered in the selection process.
Awardees are required to complete their specific study programmes and undertake to return to Hong Kong upon graduation to work for at least two years or a period equivalent to the duration of receiving the scholarship, whichever is longer.
Awardees will receive a non-means-tested scholarship to cover their tuition fees, subject to a ceiling of HK$300,000 per annum. In addition, the HKSES will provide additional support to financially needy awardees during their studies. Awardees who have passed the means test will receive a bursary of up to HK$200,000 per student per annum, to cover their living and study-related expenses. The value of the award will be correspondingly reduced if an awardee also receives other awards to finance his/her same study overseas.
For more information about the scheme, please visit the HKSES website. For enquiries, please contact the HKSES Secretariat at 3509 7395 or via email at hkses@edb.gov.hk.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
The Education Bureau (EDB) will hold five parents’ talks in early December 2024 to enhance parents’ understanding on the Secondary School Places Allocation (SSPA) System. The talks will be conducted in Cantonese and are free of charge. Parents of students who will be admitted to Secondary 1 in September 2025 are welcome to join.
Each talk will be divided into two parts. The guest speakers will share with the audience how parents can help children grow up healthily and happily through home-school co-operation, and tips on choosing a suitable school in the first part, while the representatives from the EDB School Places Allocation Section will explain the mechanism and procedure of the SSPA 2023/2025 in the second part. The talks will be conducted in Cantonese and admission is free. The details of the talks are as follows:
Besides, for undergraduate programmes, only students receiving/received their formal school education in Hong Kong are eligible. This would cover all Hong Kong students who receive/received senior secondary education in Hong Kong, including those studying/studied local and non-local curricula in Hong Kong. For postgraduate programmes, students who have obtained their undergraduate qualifications either in or outside Hong Kong are eligible, provided that they meet the criteria set out in (i) and (ii) above.
The HKSES will adopt a merit-based approach to selection, targeting the best and most outstanding Hong Kong students who are admitted to world renowned universities and programmes. Selection will be based on the applicants’ academic achievements, and other attributes such as leadership qualities and potential, contribution and commitment to the Hong Kong, etc. The applicants’ plan to return to work and contribute to Hong Kong after completion of studies will also be considered in the selection process.
Awardees are required to complete their specific study programmes and undertake to return to Hong Kong upon graduation to work for at least two years or a period equivalent to the duration of receiving the scholarship, whichever is longer.
Awardees will receive a non-means-tested scholarship to cover their tuition fees, subject to a ceiling of HK$300,000 per annum. In addition, the HKSES will provide additional support to financially needy awardees during their studies. Awardees who have passed the means test will receive a bursary of up to HK$200,000 per student per annum, to cover their living and study-related expenses. The value of the award will be correspondingly reduced if an awardee also receives other awards to finance his/her same study overseas.
For more information about the scheme, please visit the HKSES website. For enquiries, please contact the HKSES Secretariat at 3509 7395 or via email at hkses@edb.gov.hk.