HONG KONG: Anxiety is the prevailing mood as Hong Kong students await the release next Wednesday of results of the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE). Almost half the students waiting for the results say they are nervous, a survey found.

The poll taken by the Federation of Youth Groups found that 45.8 percent of 655 interviewees expressed anxiety. Some 18.9 percent said they were outright worried about their results. Some 49.3 percent of respondents said they felt under pressure, saying they are eager to get on with achieving their goals.

The survey was conducted between July 6 and 29.

Hsu Siu-man, the group's supervisor, advised students to stay positive and not to create expectations for themselves about their grades.

Hok Yau Club Student Guidance Center director Lit Ho-cheung said the center had received around 600 calls concerning the release of the public exam results since its helpline went into operation on Tuesday.

He said students should plan what to do and where to go in best and worst case scenarios.

"If they feel nervous, they can do something they enjoy, like listening to music and working out," he said.

Meanwhile, 270 Form Six places - 90 places fewer than last year - will be up for grabs at the Po Leung Kuk Vicwood K.T. Chong Sixth Form College in Tai Kok Tsui beginning next Wednesday.

The school's figures showed that students admitted last year gained an average of 21 points in the public exam for studying in its arts stream and business stream, 24 points for its biology stream and 25 points for its mathematics stream.

The college said students with a score of four points lower than last year's average admission marks will not be very likely to be admitted.

A spokeswoman for the Hang Seng School of Commerce said it will offer 360 Form Six places and 200 places for its pre-associate degree programs.

She said students with 24 points or more in the HKCEE will be admitted to its Form Six class on a first-come-first-served basis while those with 20 to 23 points will be asked to have an interview.

Students with 19 points or lower in the exam will normally not be considered, she said.

The points each student gets are the sum of the best six grades from his or her exam results. An "A" grade confers five points while an "E" grade is given a single point.

Some 119,007 candidates sat the exam this year, figures of the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority showed.

(HK Edition 07/31/2009 page1)