S/S Section 8, P.1
Administrative Procedures for Student Admission to Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS) Schools Participating in the Secondary School Places Allocation (SSPA) System
Background
Unless invited by the Government, new schools allocated by the Government in future and schools granted the approval to join the DSS on or after 1 September 2006 will not participate in the SSPA System.
2. Similar to government, aided and caput schools, DSS schools participating in the SSPA System should reserve two types of Secondary 1 places for allocation: discretionary places (DP) for admission of students at the discretion of schools and places for central allocation (CA). Participating DSS schools will follow the same admission procedures as those for government, aided and caput schools except the difference in DP quota and the adoption of the “no-choice-no-allocation” principle (i.e. students will not be allocated to the participating DSS schools unless they have included them in their school choices) in CA. DSS schools participating in the SSPA System are required to inform the School Places Allocation (SPA) Section of the Education Bureau (EDB) of the number of Secondary 1 places for DP and CA in early October each year.
Discretionary Places (DP)
3. All secondary schools participating in the SSPA System will accept application for DP within the same period of time, which usually takes places in January each year. Application for DP is not subject to restriction on districts. However, each student may apply to not more than two secondary schools participating in the SSPA System. Participating DSS schools will be included in the Handbook for Application for Secondary One Discretionary Places for parents’ reference. Schools may admit suitable students according to their education philosophy and characteristics. However, they must make public the admission criteria and weightings prior to admission. Schools may arrange interviews, but no written test should be conducted. For the DSS schools which participate in the SSPA System after the commencement of the DP stage, they can only participate in CA and cannot accept applications for DP in that allocation cycle.
Selection / Admission of Participating Students
4. Based on the scaled internal assessment results of students participating in the SSPA System at the end of Primary 5 and in mid-year of Primary 6 , the SPA Section will provide individual secondary schools with a rank order list of their DP applicants for reference. In this connection, DSS schools which participate in the SSPA System and accept DP applications are required to forward to the SPA Section in late January all EDB’s Copies of the Application Form for Secondary 1 Discretionary Place submitted by their DP applicants.
The rank order list of these students will be issued to the schools concerned by the SPA Section in mid March. DSS schools participating in the SSPA System are also required to compile a list of successful applicants and a reserve list of applicants, and return them to the SPA Section by mid April.
S/S Section 8, P.2
Central Allocation (CA)
5. Students will not be allocated to participating DSS schools unless they have included them in their school choices in CA. Apart from this, participating DSS schools will be treated in the same way as government, aided and caput schools in the arrangements for CA.
Participating DSS schools may provide school places for more than one school net. This can help enhance parental choices.
Choice Documents
6. The following information about DSS schools will be specified in the Handbook for Application for Secondary One Discretionary Places, Handbook for Unrestricted School Choices and Secondary School List for parents’ reference –
(a) DSS schools may be fee-charging; and
(b) Students having completed Secondary 3 at DSS schools may be promoted to Secondary 4 in their own schools and will not be allocated subsidised Secondary 4 places through the EDB.
Feeder / Nominated / “Through-train” Schools
7. Existing feeder and nominated secondary schools may reserve, after the deduction of repeater places and DP, a maximum of 85% and 25% of the remaining Secondary 1 places for their feeder and nominated primary schools respectively. A Primary 6 student studying in a feeder or nominated primary school is eligible for a reserved place if he/she is in Net Band 1 or 2 and has chosen the feeder or nominated secondary school as his/her first choice for restricted school choices in CA. If the feeder or nominated secondary school accepts Net Band 3 students, then these students will also be eligible. As for “through-train” secondary schools, they should admit all Primary 6 students of their “through-train” primary schools.
8. If approved to join the DSS, the feeder and nominated secondary schools have the obligation to continue to reserve an appropriate percentage of their Secondary 1 places for the students already studying in as well as those having applied for admission to their feeder and nominated primary schools. As for “through-train” schools, they also have the obligation to continue to admit all the students already studying in as well as those having applied for admission to their “through-train” primary schools. However, these students will be required to pay the DSS school fees charged by the secondary school.
Announcement of SSPA Results
9. The results of DP and CA will be released at the same time in early July.
10. After the release of SSPA results, participating DSS schools are free to exercise their discretion to fill the vacant Secondary 1 places.
S/S Section 8, P.3
Administrative Procedures for Student Admission to Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS) Schools Not Participating in the Secondary School Places Allocation (SSPA) System
Background
The following apply to DSS schools not participating in the SSPA System (non- participating DSS schools) –
(a) the Education Bureau (EDB) will not allocate students to these DSS schools in central allocation (CA) through the SSPA System except in special circumstances;
(b) these DSS schools will admit students on a territory-wide basis;
(c) parents may apply for a Secondary 1 place for their children at any non- participating DSS school, and there is no limit to the number of non- participating DSS schools they can apply to; and
(d) many, if not all, of the Primary 6 students applying for admission to non- participating DSS schools will also be participating in the SSPA System.
Given the above, in handling applications from students participating in the SSPA System for Secondary 1 admission in the following school year, non-participating DSS schools are required to observe another set of admission procedures so as not to interfere with the SSPA System.
Selection / Admission of Participating Students
2. Based on the internal assessment results of students participating in the SSPA System at the end of Primary 5 and in mid-year of Primary 6, the School Places Allocation (SPA) Section of EDB will provide individual non-participating DSS schools with a rank order list of their applicants for Secondary 1 places for reference. In this connection, non-participating DSS schools are required to submit to the SPA Section in late January a list of participating students of current cycle having applied to them for Secondary 1 places. The rank order list of these students will be issued to the schools concerned by the SPA Section in mid March.
Schools may admit suitable students according to their education philosophy and characteristics. However, they should make public the admission criteria and weightings prior to admission. Schools may arrange interviews, but no written test should be conducted.
3. While Primary 6 students participating in the SSPA System are allowed to apply for DP to not more than two participating schools, there is no limit to the number of non- participating DSS schools they can apply to for a Secondary 1 place. In this connection, non- participating DSS schools are required to submit to the SPA Section a list of participating students of current cycle admitted up to mid April. The students and parents concerned should have completed the procedure of signing an undertaking and surrender the Primary 6 Student Record Form to the school as a confirmation of the acceptance of a Secondary 1 place offered by the non-participating DSS school and the agreement to
S/S Section 8, P.4
give up any other subsidised Secondary 1 places. On receiving the successful list, the SPA Section will not allocate the students to another school through the SSPA System.
Feeder / Nominated / “Through-train” Schools
4. Existing feeder and nominated secondary schools may reserve, after the deduction of repeater places and DP, a maximum of 85% and 25% of the remaining Secondary 1 places for their feeder and nominated primary schools respectively. A Primary 6 student studying in a feeder or nominated primary school is eligible for a reserved place if he/she is in Net Band 1 or 2 and has chosen the feeder or nominated secondary school as his/her first choice for restricted school choices in CA. If the feeder or nominated secondary school accepts Net Band 3 students, then these students will also be eligible. As for “through-train” secondary schools, they should admit all Primary 6 students of their “through-train” primary schools.
5. If approved to join the DSS, the feeder and nominated secondary schools have the obligation to continue to reserve an appropriate percentage of their Secondary 1 places for the students already studying in as well as those having applied for admission to their feeder and nominated primary schools. As for “through-train” schools, they also have the obligation to continue to admit all the students already studying in as well as those having applied for admission to their “through-train” primary schools. However, these students will be required to pay the DSS school fees charged by the secondary school.
Announcement of Admission Results
6. Non-participating DSS schools are required to inform participating students of current cycle and their parents the admission results before or in mid April, and at the same time arrange for them to complete the procedure of signing an undertaking and surrender the Primary 6 Student Record Form to the school.
7. After the release of SSPA results in early July, non-participating DSS schools which still have vacant Secondary 1 places can admit those students who are willing to give up the allocated subsidised Secondary 1 places.
