Overseas universities are happy with HKDSE, but getting a place is still competitive

There will be no shortage of study options for students who receive their Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) results today. Competition for places in some disciplines or colleges could even be lower, due to a smaller number of candidates.

A total of 79,615, among them 66,613 school candidates (as opposed to private candidates), sat this year's exam. That's down from last year's total of 82,350, which included 71,222 school candidates.

The downward trend is likely to continue, given the falling student population in Hong Kong. Some community colleges have stopped hiring new staff in anticipation of this falling recruitment.

But there is no let-up in the aspirations of parents and students. On the contrary, many families regard their children's education as their top priority. For many, the ultimate goal is for them to enter a top university. So public examination results count as much as ever, regardless of the number of candidates.

To the relief of many, the HKDSE, launched in 2012 as part of the 334 academic structure reform, which extends the duration of university study to four years from three, has been well received by universities abroad.