Letters | HKU scores with tech boost, but could have timed it better for DSE students
- HKU’s new admissions criteria will benefit students with special STEM talent but poor language skills. However, for many sitting the DSE in 2019, the announcement was too sudden
On November 3, an open day at the University of Hong Kong, officials announced a change in how they would evaluate Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) scores for admissions. According to a telephone survey by an education charity, 70 per cent of secondary school students supported the change, and believed it to be feasible. However, it was a bolt from the blue for many of those sitting the DSE next year.
The university highlighted how the change would benefit more scientifically inclined students who might fail in compulsory subjects like Chinese and liberal studies. Students with talents for specific subjects can take advantage of the change. Those with more all-round skills, however, might be forced to adopt a different strategy, as they have to excel in particular subjects in order to get bonus marks for entry to HKU, and might have to consider other universities.
However, in view of Hong Kong’s lack of proficiency in STEM subjects, I support HKU’s new scoring system. Getting a 5** in STEM subjects, such as mathematics and physics, would give students an edge in their future careers.
