The number of pupils wanting to enter universities in mainland China during the 2019-2020 academic year increased 2.4 percent, or by around 100, from the previous academic year, Higher Education Bureau (DSES) Acting Director Chan Iok Wai said yesterday.
Chan revealed the figure yesterday at a press conference at the bureau about the launch of the virtual “5th Mainland China and Macau Higher Education Exhibition”, which will be held between tomorrow and Sunday.
Chan said that according to a DSES survey, there were about 4,000 high school graduates in Macau in 2019-2020. Some 48 percent expressed an interest in continuing their studies in Macau, while 33 percent wanted to pursue further education in the mainland. Chan noted that compared to previous years’ figures, in 2019 there was a 2.4 percent increase in the number of students wanting to study in the mainland. However, Chan stressed that the figures only reflected their desired but not their final location.
During the press conference, the bureau’s Resources and Schools Social Action Division chief, Sam Hio Tong, said that this was the first year that the exhibition will be held online, adding that 100 higher education institutions from the mainland covering 20 provinces and municipalities, and 10 local higher education institutions will participate in the exhibition. Chan added that there will be four online consultation sessions for potential students and their parents to ask questions directly.
Chan also said that there will be live-streamed talks about 13 different subjects, including Information Technology (IT), Architecture and Engineering. He said that there will also be a strategy programme for “recommended pupils”.
According to Wikipedia, “recommended pupils” are outstanding pupils that were recommended by the school to enter a specific higher education establishment. The pupil would need to take a “recommended pupil” exam. Pupils who are selected after the exam will not need to take the university entrance exam and will be guaranteed a place at a university.
Chan underlined that in 2021, there are 98 higher education establishments in the mainland accepting “recommended pupils” from Macau, adding that there will be 1,215 places for “recommended pupils” in universities such as Chongqing University, Hunan University of Technology and Guangdong Pharmaceutical University. He said that the recommended pupils’ exam will take place on January 16, and secondary schools can sign up their pupils from November 3 to 30 via the internet.
For more information, people can visit www.dses.gov.mo or call 8396-9235 or 8396-9390 during office hours.
Higher Education Bureau (DSES) Acting Director Chan Iok Wai (centre) and the chief of the bureau’s Resources and Schools Social Action Division, Sam Hio Tong (right), address yesterday’s press conference at the bureau. Photo: Prisca Tang
