To meet the increasing demand for development of education and personnel exchanges, the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) agreed yesterday to mutually recognize higher education degrees.

Minister of Education Zhou Ji and Arthur Li, secretary of the HKSAR Education and Manpower Bureau, appeared at the signing ceremony of a memorandum held in Beijing.

According to the memorandum of agreement, mainland students who have gained bachelor degrees can study for a master's degree or conduct vocational studies in Hong Kong's universities. Moreover, students with a master's degree can apply for a doctorate in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong university students can also select mainland universities for master's or doctor's degrees.

The signing of the document reflects the growing cooperation and exchanges in education between the two sides, said officials with the Ministry of Education.

The document also encourages universities from the mainland and the HKSAR to cooperate on ratifying course credits, said the officials. They added this will enhance the training of needed talent on both sides by exploiting the advantages of each other.

Xu Fujin, a mainlander who earned a master's degree from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said some Hong Kong universities are rich in research funds and better equipped than their mainland counterparts.

As well, mainland students can enjoy a bilingual environment and convenient lifestyle when studying in Hong Kong rather than America or Europe, she said.

"I believe there will be more mainland students wanting to study in Hong Kong," said Xu, recalling there were hundreds of mainland students studying for master's or doctor's degrees when she lived in Hong Kong from 1999 to 2002.

In another development, a special course on the national education situation opened yesterday afternoon at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

About 200 middle school students were selected by the Hong Kong Education and Manpower Bureau to attend the course, in recognition of their excellent scholastic performance.

The course is aimed at helping the students from Hong Kong understand the origin and abundance of Chinese culture, taste the new development of the motherland and feel the pride and honor of being Chinese, Minister Zhou Ji said during the opening ceremony.

Organized by the Hong Kong Education and Manpower Bureau, the course is sponsored by Peking University and Beijing University of Post and Telecommunications.

Officials said the Hong Kong bureau will dispatch some 2,000 youths to attend the national education course over the next three years.

(China Daily July 12, 2004)