Record 24 DSE students score perfect marks as university eligibility rate dips

A record 24 students from 15 schools have scored perfect marks in Hong Kong’s university entrance exams, up from 17 last year, with 36.8 per cent of day-school candidates meeting the minimum admission requirement.

The Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority released the candidates’ general performance in the Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) on Tuesday.

Most DSE subjects are graded on a seven-level scale from Level 1 to Level 5**, with Level 5 subdivided into 5, 5* and 5**.

This year, 14 boys and 10 girls attained Level 5** in six subjects, along with an “attained” result in citizenship and social development.

Among them, six boys and five girls were “super top scorers”, having also achieved 5** in the extended mathematics module.

Level 5** is awarded to the top 10 per cent of candidates who achieve Level 5 or above, followed by Level 5* for the next 30 per cent, and Level 5 for the remainder.