HKDSE kicks off amid tight anti-infection measures
China Daily
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Candidates line up to have their documents and body temperatures checked before entering an exam venue at Tseung Kwan O Government Secondary School, Hong Kong, for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination, April 24, 2020. The HKDSE, postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, kicked off on Friday. (Photo: China Daily)

HONG KONG - Hong Kong's long-awaited university entrance exam began Friday morning amid tight measures against the transmission of COVID-19 caused by a novel coronavirus.

The Diploma of Secondary Education exams, originally scheduled to begin on March 27, have been postponed due to a sudden surge of imported coronavirus cases in mid-March.

More than 52,000 candidates are sitting the exams this year.

Chinese and English oral tests have been scrapped in light of the epidemic. Exam results will be out on July 22.

Stringent anti-infection measures are in place at 350 test venues, located at secondary schools across the territory. All examinees and some 21,000 exam invigilator are required to wear masks, desks should be kept at least 1.8 meters apart, and any candidate who has a fever will be banned from entering the exam venue.