Open University enrolments have hit a record of nearly 27,000 this year as people try to make themselves more competitive in the economic downturn.
At the same time, however, the slump has forced more than 40 per cent of the university's students to apply for low-interest loans to pay tuition fees this year, compared with about 10 per cent last year.
Around 26,875 students have enrolled this year, an increase of 4.5 per cent on last year's figure of 25,722, and 17 per cent up on 1997.
University vice-president Professor Danny Wong Shek-nam said: 'Demand for continuous education often surges amid an economic downturn.
'It shows that the people of Hong Kong are anxious to enhance their competitiveness in the jobs market.'
The university is the SAR's first tertiary institution offering distance learning programmes for adults.
