UNIVERSITIES in Hong Kong were being forced to turn away talented students from the mainland because of the restrictions of government-imposed quotas, said the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST).

HKUST has received more than 3,000 applications from mainland students this year, three times as many as last year, according to the university authority. But the university had accepted just 170 applications, only a marginal increase on last year's 167 quotas, the South China Morning Post reported.

"This figure cannot increase as the University General Committee quota for non-local students is set at 10 percent of the university's annual intake," the Post quoted Pong Ting-chuen, the university's associate vice president for academic affairs, as saying.

This year's applicants also had higher academic records, Professor Pong said.

Nearly one in four of the mainland students HKUST has accepted had high enough scores at the National College Entrance Examinations (NCEE) to be eligible for Qinghua University or Beijing University, China's most prestigious universities, the Post said.

The Hong Kong government should relax quotas, said Professor Pong, adding that the cap of 10 percent should be extended to 25 percent - 15 percent set aside for students from the mainland, plus a further 10 percent for overseas students.

Tam Kar-yan, an associate dean of the university's school of business and management who conducted interviews in Shenzhen, Beijing and Shanghai, said he had had to reject "no small number" of students with good academic backgrounds and who also performed well in the interviews.

"The main reason was the quota," Professor Tam said.

Editor: Wing