Hong Kong is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China and has a population of seven million people. Under the principle of 'one country, two systems', a free market economy and way of life has been maintained in the former British dependent territory since 1 July 1997.
Public spending on education is more than 24 per cent and has been increasing year-on-year since the mid-1990s. Education is highly regarded as a means to enhancing social status and career opportunities. It is compulsory from the age of six, for nine years, whilst access to free education is provided for 12 years. More than 90 per cent of children receive three years of pre-school education, heavily subsidised through a voucher scheme introduced in 2007.
The Government has, since 1997, embarked on a programme of education reforms that aim to improve the quality of education and widen the access to senior secondary education to all students in a new senior secondary structure to be phased in from September 2009. Reforms have also aimed to increase post-secondary opportunities to 60 per cent of the age group, a target exceeded in 2005. In 2008, 64 per cent of the age group entered post-secondary education, with much of the increase generated by the Government’s support for a new self-financed associate degree sector. Reforms in curriculum, assessment, and teaching and learning aim to improve students’ communication skills, critical thinking and creativity. These reforms also aim to prepare them for living and working in a knowledge-based economy and society.
There will be a continuing shortage of sixth form places until the last cohort of students enter the current two-year senior secondary programme in 2010. There is also a shortage of undergraduate places for qualified students in Hong Kong, which will increase after the reforms as the government has no plans to increase the number of publicly-funded first degree places. Demand for GCSEs, A-levels, IB diploma and UK undergraduate programmes has been increasing since 1996.
The Hong Kong education system has traditionally been modelled on that of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, due to the historical relationship with the UK. At secondary level, students study for the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE), equivalent to GCSEs and taken at age 17, and the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination (HKALE), taken at 19. An undergraduate degree normally takes three years to complete.
In September 2009, the new academic structure for senior secondary education will be introduced. This will comprise of a three-year junior secondary education and a three-year senior secondary education followed by a four-year university education (the so-called '3+3+4' system). HKCEE and HKALE will be replaced by one single school leaving qualification, the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE).
Chinese is the language of instruction in most schools, with English taught as a second language from kindergarten onwards. A review of the medium of instruction policy was completed in 2005, with further changes in 2009. Under the resulting policy, from 2010 / 2011, secondary schools can use English as the medium of instruction from secondary one for classes where at least 85 per cent of the class is able to learn English – defined as those in the top 40 per cent across the cohort in academic performance. Schools must also prove that their teachers are able to teach in English and have other support measures. The remaining classes will be able to use English for up to 25 per cent of teaching time. Currently, approximately 112 secondary schools are permitted to use English as the medium of instruction from secondary one and the remaining 391 secondary schools use Cantonese. These schools can switch medium of instruction by class / subject at senior secondary levels.
Entry to secondary school remains selective, with students divided at the end of primary schooling into three ability bands for secondary allocation. Band one students are more likely to be allocated to the most popular English-medium schools. Internationalisation is high on the Government's agenda. Universities in Hong Kong are actively seeking and developing links with overseas institutions for student exchange, academic exchange and research collaboration. To broaden their horizons, students are encouraged to participate in exchange programmes for a semester or a year during their undergraduate studies.
There is a well-established tradition among Hong Kong families of sending their children to study overseas. According to a thematic household survey report on the 'pattern of study in higher education' by the Census and Statistics Department in October 2005, there were 45,700 people aged 15 and above who intended to study higher education outside Hong Kong in the next three years. Among these, 32.4 per cent intended to study in the UK, followed by Australia (23.1 per cent), Canada (15.0 per cent) and the USA (14.9 per cent).
There are many agents representing UK institutions, some long established. Australian institutions are also well-represented by agents. Agents are used by students for sourcing information about UK education, but not as much as the Internet, family and friends, and the British Council (according to the latest MORI survey).
Australia, the USA and Canada are the major English-speaking countries that are active in attracting Hong Kong students. According to the latest comparable figures, the UK is the leading international study destination for school and higher education.
Hong Kong offers opportunities for many sectors, due to its demand for independent school education, post-16 and further education, higher education (undergraduate, top-up degree and taught Master’s programmes) and in-country trans-national education programmes. There is strong popular demand for English-medium education, regarded as important to ensuring access to higher education and good career prospects. With places limited in Hong Kong, many families continue to look to overseas alternatives, in particular to the UK.
Senior secondary reforms being phased in from 2009, the move to four-year degrees from 2012, and the 'double cohort' in 2012 (when universities and colleges will be admitting the last secondary seven students completing Hong Kong A-levels and the first secondary six students completing the HKDSE) are expected to increase interest in overseas alternatives, as well as numbers seeking post-secondary pathways.
Hong Kong is the top source market for international students in independent schools (24 per cent in 2008 / 2009, source: ISC International) and state boarding schools. The UCAS statistics showed that over 57 per cent of applications made by Hong Kong students and accepted by UCAS from October 2007 to September 2008 were from those studying in UK schools and colleges. (Please note that the location of students at the time of application was not indicated in 24 per cent of these applications.) This data only applied to applications submitted through the UCAS procedure.
For post-16 state and independent colleges, there is growing interest in intensive GCSEs, GCE A-levels and one-year university access foundation courses. Although there has been a slight decline in Hong Kong students in further education, there remains an interest in HNDs in subjects such as hotel, catering and tourism management; sports science; business and management studies. However, the majority of Hong Kong students in FE colleges pursue traditional academic courses such as A-levels, along with English-language courses, as well as international foundation courses.
The latest UCAS statistics, meanwhile, show a continued rise in the number of university applications from Hong Kong – a rise of 1.3 per cent (as of 23 April 2009) over the same period last year. The most popular courses at undergraduate level include business studies, accounting, social studies, design studies and economics. At postgraduate level, the following courses are most popular: business; education; clinical medicine; social studies and law.
The decline in postgraduate numbers may be largely due to increasing local provision, including the growing number of UK courses offered with local universities and private providers. However, the economic recession, which has resulted in a shortage of jobs for graduates, is expected to increase the attraction of postgraduate study in Hong Kong and overseas.
British Council Hong Kong moved to its purpose-built building, next to the British Consulate General, in 1996. It is one of the largest British Council centres in the worldwide network and provides a wide array of services, including UK education, examinations, arts and creativity and English teaching. These services are often co-ordinated to provide a one-stop-shop service to Hong Kong people. For example, we offer English preparation courses for IELTS (International English Language Testing System) candidates and free IELTS preparation on-line resources for those who registered to take the test with us, and education consultation services for candidates who want to use their IELTS result for application to UK education.
The British Council Hong Kong website captures all our events and services and attracts more than 70,000 visits a month, while our monthly newsletter, called What’s in it for you..., is distributed to all customers of the British Council as well as to the general public through placement in public libraries, schools and cafes.
British Council Hong Kong organises a range of work in collaboration with the Education Bureau, which we hope will contribute to an overall improvement in the standard of English in Hong Kong, as well as a professional dialogue between policy-makers and educational practitioners in the UK and Hong Kong supporting the improvement of education.
Hong Kong is one of the three markets where education promotion first began, in 1984. The first education exhibition was the clearing mission in August 1986. The British Council currently organises two annual Education UK exhibitions in Hong Kong, every August and January / February. The January / February exhibition attracted an average 84 institutions and 7,700 visitors in 2008 and 2009. The August event was attended by an average 76 institutions and 7,600 visitors in 2007 and 2008. The February 2009 exhibition was the first in Hong Kong to introduce a trans-national Education (TNE) zone to promote UK courses that could be studied locally. The British Council also organises two information days for boarding schools and colleges, as well as seminars on UK education throughout the year.
| 
