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Education

Self-financing Post-secondary Education Sector

The government promotes the sustainable development of the self-financing post-secondary sector by providing land and premises at nominal premium and rent, interest-free start-up loans, the $3.52 billion Self-financing Post-secondary Education Fund (SPEF), financial assistance for students and quality assurance subsidies. In 2020, the bureau launched the Enhancement and Start-up Grant Scheme for Self-financing Post-secondary Education (ESGS) with a funding commitment of $1.26 billion to provide financial support for eligible self-financing post-secondary education institutions to enhance and develop programmes that meet market needs but require high start-up costs.

The Study Subsidy Scheme for Designated Professions/Sectors, launched in 2015-16 and expanded in 2019-20, subsidises students who pursue designated full-time, locally accredited self-financing undergraduate and sub-degree programmes in selected disciplines. It currently benefits about 3,000 undergraduate students and 2,000 sub-degree students per cohort.

The government also provides means-tested and non-means-tested financial assistance to eligible students pursuing full-time, locally accredited local and non-local self-financing undergraduate programmes, including top-up degree programmes, offered in Hong Kong by eligible institutions. In 2020-21, about 16,300 students received assistance under the Non-means-tested Subsidy Scheme for Self-financing Undergraduate Studies in Hong Kong.

Governance of Post-secondary Institutions

All UGC-funded universities, the Open University and the HKAPA are statutory bodies governed by their own ordinances. Eleven approved post-secondary colleges are registered under and governed by the Post Secondary Colleges Ordinance. Each post-secondary institution has its own structure of governance, normally including a governing body, called the council or board of governors, and a body to regulate academic affairs, called the senate or academic board.

Vocational and Professional Education and Training and Adult Education

The government's Task Force on Promotion of Vocational and Professional Education and Training (VPET) submitted its final report to the government in January. The government has generally accepted and is following up on the report's 18 recommendations, which focus on four areas: (1) enhancing promotion in secondary education; (2) enhancing promotion in higher education; (3) developing vocational progression pathways; and (4) strengthening future promotion. The government established the Steering Committee on Promotion of VPET and Qualifications Framework in September in response to one of the report's recommendations.

Vocational Training Council

The VTC is a statutory body that offers VPET for school leavers and adult learners. It provided some 200,000 full-time and part-time places in 2019-20.

Quality-assured, internationally recognised full-time and part-time courses up to master's degree level are available for students who have completed Secondary 3 education or above, covering business, childcare, elderly and community services, design, engineering, health and life sciences, hospitality and information technology. The courses are offered through the VTC's

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