Some 88 per cent of Hong Kong parents are paying or have paid for private tuition. Hong Kong parents took the top spot as the world’s biggest spenders on their children’s education, paying nearly HK$1 million on average from primary school to undergraduate study, a report has revealed.
A survey by HSBC of 8,481 parents in 15 cities and countries around the world in February found that Hong Kong parents are willing to pay approximately HK$1 million on their children’s education, ranging from school tuition fees and books, to transport and accommodation. This is in stark contrast to the global average of HK$350,000.
Parents in the United Arab Emirates came second with an average cost of almost HK$780,000, followed by Singaporean parents with HK$550,000.
In addition, the survey found that some 88 per cent of Hong Kong parents are paying or have paid for private tuition. Half of the parents polled are also willing to reduce spending on leisure activities. Some 37 per cent were ready to give up their leisure activities totally, the survey showed.
Hok Yau Club’s Student Guidance Centre director Ng Po-shing told Young Post yesterday that many Hong Kong parents are willing to spend a considerable amount of money and time on education because most of them only have one or two children.
“Competition in the city is keen,” said Ng. “Most parents always compare their children with others, so they hope to spend more to equip children with every skill which can make them more competitive and stand out from the crowd.
“However, parents need to ask themselves if it’s worth spending such a huge amount of money. The amount of money they spend doesn’t always help their children to become top scorers.”