Nearly half of Hong Kong’s direct subsidy scheme (DSS) schools plan to freeze next year’s tuition levels amid the coronavirus-driven economic downturn, though almost a third have already applied to raise fees.
Among the city’s 71 DSS schools – government-subsidised institutions that occupy a middle ground between public and private – 35 have said they will freeze fees in 2020-21.
Education Bureau figures released on Monday, however, showed that 22 DSS schools had applied to raise fees as of May 5, though the bureau did not specify the sizes of the proposed increases. The remainder are pending formal application or revision.