The Education Bureau announced today (October 26) that the 2021/22 round of applications under the Quality Enhancement Support Scheme (QESS) of the Self-financing Post-secondary Education Fund is open.
Launched in November 2012, the QESS is a major support measure to promote the healthy and sustainable development of the self-financing post-secondary education sector with the aim of enhancing the quality of teaching and learning in the sector. It accepts applications under three project categories, namely theme-based projects, open-ended projects and industrial attachment (IA) projects.
The 2021/22 round of applications is inviting projects proposed to be launched in the 2022/23 academic year. The deadline for applications is February 28, 2022. As in previous years, applicants in the category of theme-based projects may set their own themes, provided that the projects are conducted in a collaborative manner, i.e. planned and undertaken by more than one eligible institution, to foster closer collaboration and synergy among institutions and benefit the sector as widely as possible.
The applicants in the category of open-ended projects need to submit applications in relation to the relevant areas of the QESS funding. The main areas include:
(1) improving the overall learning experience and language proficiency of students;
(2) developing and improving the teaching methodology and practices, including the development of assessment strategies;
(3) strengthening and improving quality assurance and related measures; and
(4) enhancing student support and career guidance services, including support for non-Chinese speaking students and students with special educational needs.
As regards the category of IA projects, applicants can submit proposals within the following areas:
(1) incorporating quality-assured work-based learning and assessment in the programme curriculum through close partnership with industries;
(2) sourcing of more industrial attachment opportunities within and/or outside Hong Kong, and/or enhancement of relevant institutional support for students; and
(3) organisation of visits or short-term training/courses conducted within and/or outside Hong Kong for students, which are directly relevant to industrial attachment.
All non-profit-making education institutions offering full-time locally accredited self-financing sub-degree or bachelor's degree (including top-up degree) programmes are eligible to apply. Other related bodies such as the federations of these education institutions and quality assurance agencies may also apply. All applications will be considered by the Sub-committee on Support Measures established under the Committee on Self-financing Post-secondary Education.
Since its launch, over 90 projects have been approved under the QESS with a total grant of about $356 million. In the 2020/21 round of applications, eight out of 36 applications were approved with a total earmarked grant of about $24 million. The aims of the approved projects include improving teaching practices and learning effectiveness through adopting e-learning and interactive instructional approaches, establishing a system for quality assurance and enhancement, and enhancing students' employability through industrial attachment opportunities and industries-specific skills training.
Further details of the QESS, including the detailed descriptions of the areas of various categories of projects and the application procedures, are available at the Concourse for Self-financing Post-secondary Education at www.cspe.edu.hk/en/qess-project.page.
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