Selection completed for fourth cohort of School Nominations Direct Admission Scheme
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A total of 814 valid SNDAS nominations were received from 420 secondary schools for the fourth cohort. In the past few months, the eight University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded universities participating in the Scheme arranged interviews for the nominated students and carefully considered their individual merits. Firm offers were eventually made to 342 nominees prior to the release of the 2025 Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) Examination results, of which 335 have accepted the offers and will commence study on their chosen UGC-funded undergraduate programmes in September 2025 in a wide spectrum of disciplines including architecture, surveying and town planning, arts and humanities, business, computing and engineering, environmental studies, design, fine arts, language, law, medicine and health, music, sciences and social sciences. A breakdown by study discipline is provided in the Annex.
The Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, was pleased to note the encouraging results of the fourth cohort of the SNDAS, in particular the continuing increase in the number of offers made to successful nominees.
"Talent in diversified skills and knowledge is the key to Hong Kong's future development. The Government has always placed great emphasis on nurturing young people, striving to enhance the education system and creating diverse opportunities for students to reach their full potential in different areas. I am deeply grateful for the support from secondary schools and universities for the SNDAS, as well as their recognition of students' multifaceted talents, and for cultivating more future talent for Hong Kong," Dr Choi said.
To promote a culture of multifaceted excellence, the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau has launched the Multi-talent Development Scholarship (MDS) in the 2025/26 academic year, funded by the Board of Management of the Chinese Permanent Cemeteries, for admittees of the SNDAS demonstrating outstanding achievements in arts, sports and/or community service on top of the firm offers made under the SNDAS.
Among the students being formally admitted to their respective universities under the SNDAS, each of the eight UGC-funded universities will be invited to nominate SNDAS admittees demonstrating an outstanding performance in arts, sports and/or community service for awarding scholarships in addition to the firm offers made. The quotas of scholarship nominations will be distributed proportionally having regard to the number of students admitted to each university by the SNDAS. Each awardee, not subject to means testing, will be granted a scholarship of $10,000 per year across his/her four-year tuition period. Universities shall enjoy the autonomy to select and nominate awardees for the MDS.
The fifth cohort of the SNDAS will be open for applications by Secondary Six students taking the 2026 HKDSE Examinations and commencing their undergraduate studies in September 2026. Details of the application arrangements will be announced in due course.
The SNDAS was introduced in 2021 as part of EDB's response to the recommendations made by the Task Force on Review of School Curriculum, which included enhancing flexibility in university admissions. The eight UGC-funded universities had designated around 300 publicly funded undergraduate programmes for the fourth cohort of the SNDAS and set admission criteria that are not based on HKDSE Examination results for individual programmes.
Ends/Friday, July 4, 2025
Issued at HKT 11:00
Issued at HKT 11:00
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