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Guide for New Students

8. Course Exemption / Credit Accumulation and Transfer (CAT)

8.1   Exemption from Chinese / English Courses

Before submitting application(s) for course exemption, please read the following important note carefully:

  • Read the Course Exemption Regulations and Procedures (extracted from the Student Handbook); and

  • Refer to the Programme Structure available on the College Website to confirm the Chinese Language and/ or Core English course(s) required for your programme of study.

 

Submission Deadline

All applications must be submitted via e-Form by 31 August to ensure that any approved exemptions can be reflected in students' timetable in a timely manner. Late applications will not be accepted under any circumstances.

 

Exemption from Chinese Courses

Exemption from Specified Core English Courses

Who can apply

  • Students who do not have local Chinese Language background at Secondary 4 or above; or

  • Students with overseas Qualifications (IB Diploma, SAT, GCE, IGCE or IGCSE result); or 

  • Students who have taken Applied Learning Chinese (for non-Chinese speaking students); or

  • Other qualifications to be considered on a case by case basis.

Note: Students who have sat for HKDSE/ HKCEE/ HKALE Chinese subjects or equivalent will NOT be considered for exemption from Chinese course(s) regardless of the examination results.

  • Students with satisfactory results in a course equivalent to the specified core English course they are required to take; or

  • Students with outstanding results in the public examination (e.g. HKDSE/ IELTS/ GCSE).

How to apply

Notes:

  • Students who have applied through the Stage 1 Online Registration System or submitted an earlier application DO NOT need to apply again.

  • Students of the ASS Communication, Public Relations and Journalism (CPRJ) programme are not eligible for exemption from Chinese course(s), as they must write and present in Chinese in the core Chinese course(s).

Note: Exemption from the core English courses does NOT apply to the following programmes:

  • HD Applied Health and Rehabilitation Care

  • HD Applied Intelligent Technologies

  • HD Community and Primary Healthcare

  • HD Food Science and Safety (HP812)

  • HD IT and Data Analytics

  • HD Nutrition and Food Management (HP813)

Result Notification

Once all required documents are received, the College will review the application and notify applicants of the result by email within about two weeks.

What to do if the application is approved

The College will assign a substitute course based on student’s class schedule and availability. No change of the proposed substitute courses can be made by the students.

  • If the exemption from the course “CCEN4003 Introduction to Academic English” is approved, the student has to take a substitute course. The substitute course will be assigned based on student’s class schedule and availability. No change to the substitute course assigned can be made by the students.

  • If the exemption from attending the lessons of other core English courses, students are still required to complete the course assessments (e.g. assignments/ tests/ examination). Students have to communicate with the course lecturer from time to time for the schedule of coursework submission, test and examination.

Note: The information on this page is provided for easy reference by new students. Students should refer to the latest announcements and messages on the Learner Portal for the most up-to-date information. In case of any discrepancy, the information published on the LP shall prevail.

 

Enquiries:

For current and return students, please contact Ms. Suki Kwok at 3923 7142 or hpshcc13@hkuspace-plk.hku.hk.

For new students of 2026-27 intake, please contact Ms. Alice Kwok at 3923 7076 or hpshcc10@hkuspace-plk.hku.hk.

 

8.2   Credit Accumulation and Transfer (CAT)

(a)  Who can apply?

  • Students with relevant post-secondary education background may apply for credit transfer for their previous academic qualifications;

  • For successful case, the credits of the courses gained previously will be transferred to their College programme (please note that the grades will not be transferred, i.e. the grades of such courses will not be counted in the calculation of the grade point averages of the College programme)

  • A maximum of 50% of the total credits of a College programme might be transferred from students’ previous studies

 

(b)  Application Procedures & Deadline

  • Students should submit the application with supporting documents by email to studentrecords@hkuspace-plk.hku.hk. The email subject should be “Application for Credit Accumulation and Transfer”;

  • The application email should clearly indicate the course(s) of their College programme applying for credit transfer and the course(s) in previous academic qualifications supporting the credit transfer;

  • The supporting documents should include but not limited to the course syllabus, course learning outcomes, Hong Kong Qualifications Framework (HKQF) Level, academic performance, year of award, contact hours etc.

  • Application deadline: 5:30 pm, 31 August 2026.