The sky-high reservation fee for Hong Kong schools is still rising! Who gave you the courage?
In recent years, Hong Kong schools have implemented a retention fee system to determine students' willingness to study and rationalize resources. However, recent news shows that the cost of this system has been rising, causing widespread concern and controversy.
Compared to other countries, the UK university registration fee is generally £1,000-2,000, and the Singapore university reservation fee is 5,000-10,000 Singapore dollars. However, a Hong Kong university offered a staggering HK$171,000 for the admission of a master's program in 23fall this year.
What is even more shocking is that CUHK's Public Policy and New Media programmes have relatively low retention fees of HK$85,000 and HK$82,000 respectively. Despite this, the reservation fee is still equivalent to half a semester's tuition fee.
Amazingly, the reservation fee must be paid in a lump sum and is non-refundable. This is undoubtedly a heavy burden for students whose families are more financially constrained.
As the popularity of studying in Hong Kong continues to increase, the reservation fee is likely to continue to rise. On the occasion of the opening of the admission of 24fall, the reservation fee of a university rose by more than 20,000 Hong Kong dollars again, reaching 197,000 Hong Kong dollars.
The Faculty of Engineering at HKU and CUHK have higher retention fees of HK$140,000 and HK$174,000 respectively. In contrast, the retention fee for most majors at City Universities, University of Science and Technology, and EdUHK is more reasonable.
What is the purpose of such a high reservation fee? Some people have questioned that Hong Kong schools want to earn more income by raising prices. However, Hong Kong schools said that the introduction of the reservation fee is to better assess students' willingness to attend and allocate educational resources reasonably.
It is undeniable that Hong Kong schools have a high status in terms of the quality of education and international academic reputation. However, such sky-high retention fees undoubtedly impose a heavy financial burden on many students and families who aspire to pursue higher education in Hong Kong.
In the face of this problem, the government and educational institutions should seriously think about how to ensure the quality of education while making higher education more affordable for more people.
In short, the rise in the sky-high retention fee of Hong Kong schools has aroused widespread concern in the society. As an educational institution, more consideration should be given to the financial affordability of students and families, as well as the rational allocation of educational resources. Only in this way can we truly achieve equity and universal access to education.