Hong Kong's fourth annual School Nomination Direct Admission Scheme (SNDAS) has seen 335 secondary six students secure early university placements, marking a 2.8 percent increase from last year, the Education Bureau announced on Friday.
These students will begin their bachelor's degree programs this September without waiting for Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) examination results.
Medical and health-related programs proved the most sought-after, admitting 75 students (22 percent of total placements), followed by science courses with 65 admissions (19.4 percent), and computer science and engineering programs with 61 successful applicants (18.2 percent).
The scheme received 814 valid nominations from 420 secondary schools this year.
Participating universities under the Joint University Programmes Admissions System (JUPAS) issued 342 direct offers, with 335 students accepting their placements.
Introduced in 2021 following recommendations to enhance university admission flexibility, the SNDAS allows about 300 government-funded undergraduate programs across eight institutions to select students based on talents beyond DSE scores.
The DSE results are scheduled for release on July 16, but SNDAS participants have already secured their academic futures.
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