Education SystemPrint

Education System

There are nine years of compulsory schooling in Hong Kong, six in primary school and three in junior secondary school. Majority of students, however, attend three years of pre-primary education (kindergarten K1 to K3) before attending primary school.

In secondary school, after the compulsory three years(S1 to S3), there are two years of senior secondary education(S4 to S5) and then another two years matriculation(S6 to S7). Students gain entry to a range of post-secondary, vocational and tertiary courses offered by a variety of institutions based on the students’ results in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examinations(HKCEE) at the end of S5 or the Hong Kong Advanced Level) examinations(HKALE) at the end of S7. But this system will now revert to the new curriculum, NSS(New Senior Secondary), that already began with the S4 students in the 2009-2010 school year. The new secondary curriculum system will phase out the HKCEE(final examinations in May 2010) and the HKALE(final examinations in May2012). In the new curriculum(3+3+4), there will be three years of junior secondary education, followed by three years of senior secondary education, finishing in the HK Diploma of Secondary Education(HKDSE) at the third year.

New Curriculum

Kindergarten (Pre-Primary)

6

P1 – P6 (Primary)

6

S1 – S3 (Junior Secondary)

6

S4 – S6 (Senior Secondary)

6

Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE)

2-Year Community College

4-year College or University

For more information about the new curriculum, please refer to:

http://334.edb.hkedcity.net/EN/index.php

Note: The above curriculum does not apply to independent schools(including English Schools Foundation(ESF) and International schools) that follow the US, UK, IB or other overseas curriculum