Students smile in relief as 95pc get top three choices in secondary school allocation

The weight lifted off most Primary Six shoulders on Tuesday morning as the Secondary School Places Allocation (SSPA) results confirmed their first-choice placements. 

According to the Education Bureau, 48,545 students took part in this year's SSPA, with the overall top-three satisfaction rate holding steady at 95 percent through the two allocation stages. 

The overall satisfaction rate for pupils securing their first choice stood at 84 percent, marking a single percentage point dip from last year. 

Among those cheering was a student at Yaumati Catholic Primary School (Hoi Wang Road), who secured her first choice at St. Stephen's Girls' College through the discretionary places(DP) stage.

"I applied after discussing it with my parents. Now I just want to go home and celebrate," she beamed, citing the school's warm atmosphere as a deciding factor.

Her mother admitted the result was unexpected but the family was overjoyed.

Another classmate, who also clinched a first-choice placement after two years of preparation, expressed great satisfaction. His weary parents confessed to losing sleep for three days, joking that they can finally rest properly. 

Second choice with no regrets

While not every student got their first pick, another student at the school refused to dwell on disappointment despite being assigned to second-choice King's College.

 "It is already wonderful to be admitted," he said, adding that his celebration plan involved video games at home.

Polly Chan Shuk-yee, principal of Yaumati Catholic Primary School (Hoi Wang Road), called this year's result as "exceptional",  with both the first-choice and top-three satisfaction rates at her school surpassing the city’s average. 

She reported the school’s first-choice rate hit an impressive 92.4 percent, anticipating that 5 to 6 percent of parents would still go door-knocking for a chance at their dream schools  

However, she urged families to carefully consider each school's philosophy before taking that step for the children’s development. 

Parents are reminded that all Primary Six students are required to register at their allocated secondary schools on Thursday (Jul 9) or Friday (Jul 10).

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