A business college at one of Hong Kong’s most prestigious international schools, which has been offering vocational training courses for decades, has been doing so illegally and will be forced to shut down in the summer. A strongly worded letter issued by the Education Bureau last week slammed the college at German Swiss International School (GSIS), located at its Pok Fu Lam campus, for blatantly disregarding the Education Ordinance and deliberately concealing the post-secondary nature of the college, which was “entirely unacceptable”. Under the ordinance, anyone who manages or takes part in operating an unregistered school could be fined up to HK$250,000 and jailed for two years. Among the college’s about 50 current students, some 25 who would graduate this year will be allowed to complete their studies. But the rest will not be able to continue as the college will close its doors ahead of the upcoming 2020/21 school year. ‘Little, if any, possibility’ Hong Kong schools resume fully on April 20, Lam says The bureau’s letter, seen and verified by the Post , said GSIS’s service agreement with the Hong Kong government was to operate a non-profit-making international school providing kindergarten, primary and secondary education, but not post-secondary education. To provide post-secondary education, GSIS would need to have registered the college, but it did not. For years, GSIS’s Business College has offered a two-year Dual System Professional Training programme – which focuses on two areas, wholesale and foreign trade or transport and logistics – in cooperation with German Industry and Commerce (GIC) and in accordance with the German Vocational Training Act. The programme, which according to GIC has been provided to students since 1984, claims to offer students an officially recognised certificate from the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce, and charges HK$46,000 annually. It provides students with theoretical training about 1.5 days per week, and for 3.5 days per week they do practical training at partner companies. In 2002, GSIS got the bureau’s approval to run a vocational training department as an additional course after the school explained it was a part of secondary education. But the Education Bureau’s latest investigation found that in recent years the college had pupils older than 20, as well as some who held bachelor’s degrees. The bureau also pointed out that GSIS’s Pok Fu Lam campus was only leased to it for operating education programmes up to secondary level. “Nonetheless, in consideration of the welfare of the existing students of the GSIS Business College who have not yet completed their studies in the 2019/20 school year, we are prepared to give exceptional treatment to allow [its] continued operation,” the letter read. In consideration of the welfare of the existing students of the GSIS Business College who have not yet completed their studies in the 2019/20 school year, we are prepared to give exceptional treatment Education Bureau’s letter “Such exceptional treatment, however, should not be taken as the [bureau’s] endorsement of the operation of the Business College providing post-secondary education.” The bureau also criticised GSIS for deceiving the government when it previously said the Business College’s programmes had “remain(ed) strictly part of the secondary education” in its response to the bureau’s inquiries back in 2018. “There appears to be a blatant disregard of the provisions of the Education Ordinance and the provisions of the Service Agreement as well as deliberate concealment of the true nature of the education provided by the Business College,” the letter added. Education sector lawmaker Ip Kin-yuen believed the bureau’s stern tone reflected that the situation could be serious. He added that officials would normally ask institutions operating without proper registration to first find ways to resolve the problems, and take further action only if they did not comply. Hong Kong teachers’ union to distribute 100,000 masks to schools “It would also depend on how the bureau looks at the incident. If it was deliberate or had caused damage to many others, that might eventually end up with prosecution,” he said. GSIS confirmed on Tuesday it would cease operation of the Business College by the end of the current school year, adding that the board and the school would fully comply with the Education Bureau and would stringently adhere to the law. But in a statement on Wednesday, GIC said it maintained a cooperative and transparent relationship with the bureau, and was hopeful the matter could be resolved in a timely manner. The Education Bureau confirmed it met the German consul general and GIC on Wednesday to discuss the way forward for the business courses operated by the GSIS.