Hong Kong Organization Responds to Student Demand for the ACT

The sky’s the limit for a Hong Kong organization seeking to meet demands for the ACT among students in Hong Kong and mainland China.

The Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA) will ensure that ACT has all required seating capacity for ACT testing in Hong Kong on the five international test dates as needed to meet rapidly increasing local demand for the test. The HKEAA is an independent and self-financing statutory body that administers local public examinations and more than 200 international and professional assessments. More than 300,000 candidates make use of the services provided on international and professional examinations annually.

Foremost among the HKEAA’s responsibilities under a new agreement with ACT are administering the ACT and establishing additional ACT Test Centers as local demand for the test increases, allowing all students who register for the exam to take it on their preferred test date. Prior to the agreement, there were only four test centers in Hong Kong, limiting the number of students who were able to take the ACT.

The ACT is offered internationally in October, December, February, April, and June.

A Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority staff member (left) helps a student at the HKEAA office.

Also under the agreement, the HKEAA will provide free ACT test preparation materials, and inform students via both its Chinese-language and English-language websites on how to register for the ACT and how to make transportation and lodging arrangements if they need to travel long distances to take the ACT.

“The agreement with the HKEAA represents an important accomplishment for ACT, especially for students living in mainland China who must travel outside of the mainland to take the ACT,” said Patrick Bourgeacq, director of international service relationships, ACT International Division.

This is significant because the Chinese government currently restricts its citizens from taking foreign college entrance exams—including the ACT—in mainland China. Mainland students must travel to places like Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, and other nearby countries to take the exams. The HKEAA is well equipped to deal with a large influx of students from China to test.

Adding the ACT to its roster fits in well with the HKEAA’s mission of meeting educational and societal needs in Hong Kong, said Tony Chan, manager-examinations administration for the HKEAA.

“Demand for the ACT has been escalating over the past few years, and we expect it to continue to intensify as more students in Hong Kong and mainland China learn about the test and the opportunity to take it at several locations across Hong Kong,” he said.

Staff members from the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA) administer an assessment at a testing facility in Hong Kong. Under a new agreement with ACT, the HKEAA will administer the ACT and establish additional ACT Test Centers as local demand for the test increases.