The Study Subsidy Scheme for Designated Professions/Sectors will subsidise 4,916 places in 55 undergraduate programmes of eight post-secondary institutions in the 2025-26 academic year, the Education Bureau announced today.

They comprise 3,365 places in 55 first-year-first-degree programmes and 1,551 places in 44 top-up degree programmes, which fall under 10 disciplines that have keen manpower demand.

The disciplines are: architecture and engineering, computer science, creative industries, fintech, healthcare, insurance, logistics, sports and recreation, testing and certification, and tourism and hospitality.

The programmes include the eight applied degrees introduced under the Pilot Project on the Development of Applied Degree Programmes, due to receive additional subsidies with a view to further strengthening the vocational and professional education and training progression pathway.

The bureau determined the programmes and number of places to be subsidised under the scheme after consulting relevant policy bureaus and departments.

In the 2025-26 academic year, the annual subsidy amount for laboratory-based programmes will be increased from $79,770 in the 2024-25 academic year to $81,450, while that for non-laboratory-based programmes will be increased from $45,810 to $46,780.

The scheme was launched in the 2015-16 academic year to assist students to pursue designated full-time locally accredited self-financing undergraduate programmes in selected disciplines and encourage the self-financing post-secondary education sector to offer programmes in selected disciplines that meet Hong Kong's social and economic needs.

It was expanded from the 2023-24 academic year to include top-up degree programmes.