Hong Kong institution uncovers 3 cases of fraudulent mainland applications

A private higher education institution in Hong Kong said it discovered three cases of admissions fraud from mainland Chinese applicants last year, with some of the candidates asking others to attend entrance interviews or take international English tests on their behalf.

Tung Wah College, which is seeking to apply for university status the next school year, revealed the cases on Monday as it reported a fivefold year-on-year increase in its intake of mainland students and an 11 per cent rise in the salaries of its graduates in 2024.

Sally Chan Wai-chi, president of Tung Wah College with its main campus in Ho Man Tin, said the institution rejected the three fraudulent applications from mainland students, the first of such cases the school had encountered.

“We found out one individual tampered with gaokao results as it did not match the certificates sent by mainland authorities,” she said, referring to the national college entrance examination.

“Another involved a person attending an entrance interview that was not the real applicant.”

She said the fake interviewee was caught red handed during the interview when the interviewers checked the identification document the applicant sent.