Reforming the Academic Structure of Our Universities

51. I have spoken about important areas of education reform and of the progress being made in the provision of secondary and primary education. In the long run, another major reform issue that needs to be addressed is the academic structure of our universities.

52. The University Grants Committee is conducting a comprehensive review of the future development of tertiary education. The Education Commission is also looking closely at the broad direction of changing the present three-year university degree structure to a four-year one, and the present '5+2' secondary school structure to a '3+3' system. The Education and Manpower Bureau is examining the preparatory work for such changes, which involves complex issues such as determining the demand for senior secondary school places, assessing the demand and supply of teachers, identifying sites for new schools and redesigning the curricula of senior secondary school and first-year university programmes to enable a better bridging of academic courses.

53. Four-year university degrees are an international norm. Extending the duration of university programmes requires significant additional resources. However, we believe that the community and the Government together are capable of bearing the cost. We hope that a consensus can be reached soon on all important issues relating to this matter. If it is decided to make a change, we expect that reforms to the senior secondary and university structure can be made within ten years.