SSSDP Funds 59 Bachelor's Degree Programmes; Total Places Reduced to 4,711; Metropolitan University Retains Top Spot Among Self-Financing Institutions

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The government continues to promote vocational and professional education. The Education Bureau has announced details of the "Study Subsidy Scheme for Designated Professions/Sectors" (SSSDP) for the next academic year. A total of 59 bachelor's degree programmes across 8 self-financing post-secondary institutions will be subsidised. The number of subsidised applied degree programmes will increase from 16 to 20, but the total number of places will be reduced to 4,711, 70 fewer than this academic year. Metropolitan University has once again retained the top spot among self-financing post-secondary institutions in terms of both the number of subsidised programmes and total places in the latest round of SSSDP.

📊 Funding Covers 59 Programmes; Overview of Place Distribution
The programmes subsidised under SSSDP for the new academic year cover 59 first-year bachelor's degree programmes with a total of 3,390 places, and 47 top-up degree programmes with a total of 1,321 places. The number of subsidised programmes has increased by 2 compared with last year. Programmes with larger reductions in places include Metropolitan University's Bachelor of Business Administration (Honours) in Sports and Recreation Management (Year 3), Saint Francis University's Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Physiotherapy (Year 1), Tung Wah College's Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Occupational Therapy (Year 1), and the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong's Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours) in Sports Therapy (Year 3), each reduced by 20 places.

🆕 Newly Included Programmes Cover Robotics and Game Design
The newly included SSSDP programmes are Metropolitan University's Bachelor of Applied Science (Honours) in Robotics and Automation Engineering, and Shue Yan University's Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Applied Digital Solutions for Entertainment and Games, offering 40 and 25 places respectively. Metropolitan University's new Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in New Music and Interactive Entertainment, Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Animation and Visual Effects, Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Food Testing Science, and THEi's Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours) in Sports Therapy will all become applied degree programmes in the 2027/28 academic year.

💰 Subsidy Amounts Remain Unchanged; Applied Degrees Receive Additional Funding
The Education Bureau stated that the degree programmes included in the subsidy scheme fall under 10 disciplines with keen manpower demand, namely architecture and engineering, computer science, creative industries, healthcare, insurance and logistics, among others, including 20 applied degree programmes, which will receive additional subsidies. In addition, the annual subsidy amounts for laboratory-based and non-laboratory-based programmes remain unchanged at $81,450 and $46,780 respectively. After calculating the additional annual subsidy for applied degree programmes, the total annual subsidy amounts for both remain at $89,620 and $51,880.

🤖 Metropolitan University's New Programme Cultivates Automation Talent; Lam Kwan-sing: Keeping Pace with Industry Development
Metropolitan University's newly launched "Bachelor of Applied Science (Honours) in Robotics and Automation Engineering" programme will be included in the SSSDP. The university said the programme focuses on the practical application of robotics and automation engineering, combining theory with practical training to cultivate professionals who can help the industry apply automation technology in real working environments. President Lam Kwan-sing reiterated that Metropolitan University will continue to leverage its advantages to ensure programme content keeps pace with the latest industry developments, nurturing more applied talent with both professional knowledge and practical experience.