EDUCATION
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shows an increase of 438 or 19 per cent and the number of par- ticipating schools has increased to 55, as compared with 47 last year. The status of this certificate is similar to that of the English school certificate.
Matriculation. The University of Hong Kong Matriculation Examination is conducted by the university at ordinary and advanced levels. The standards are those of the general certificate of education. Passes at advanced and ordinary levels are necessary to secure admission to the university and this certificate may also be used as an entrance qualification to the teacher-training colleges. Candidates are entered for the examination at ordinary level after a one-year course in form six of an Anglo-Chinese grammar school and for the advanced level after a two-year course. Admission to form six depends on the pupil's performance in the Hong Kong school certificate examination. Private candidates are also per- mitted to sit.
External Examinations. The Education Department provides a local secretary for various examining bodies in Britain and so makes available to students in Hong Kong many overseas examina- tions, the standards of which are comparable with those of the corresponding examinations held in Britain. Of these examinations, the GCE examination is open to both school and private candidates who hold a school certificate of the required standard. London University Degree examinations are also conducted annually in May and June. Appendix VI shows the more important examina- tions held in Hong Kong and the number of candidates entering for them. In addition, arrangements are made for setting the question papers for the Sarawak Chinese Middle School Common Examination and for marking about 12,250 scripts for the Sarawak Junior Secondary School Certificate Examination.
OVERSEAS SCHOLARSHIPS AND BURSARIES
In addition to the 1,117 government awards listed in Appendix VI, nine scholarships for post-graduate studies and four bursaries for one-year teaching courses, tenable at British educational in- stitutions, were awarded by the British Government to candidates from Hong Kong. These were made under the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan formulated at the Education