More than 3,000 students sat through the first day of university entrance exams on 24 April 2020.
The Diploma for Secondary Education exams were given the go ahead after a four week delay, but only with strict health measures in places.
Scroll down for the full script.
(Aired on ViuTVSix on 24 April 2020.)
Full Script:
These are some of the first secondary school students taking exams in person anywhere in the world - during the pandemic.
Quite a few candidates- some accompanied by their on-edge parents - arrived a full hour before exam centres opened.
(Voxpop)
"Officials said they'll check temperatures at the door, so we came early to allow time for that. I'm carrying my daughter's things for the Visual Arts exam today, I'm here to support her so she doesn't feel nervous."
(Voxpop)
"I was really worried about hitting a traffic jam. I also brought a lot of extra masks, hand sanitiser and wet wipes."
Students had to fill in a health declaration form.
Inside the exam hall, desks were spaced nearly two metres apart.
And exam supervisors wore gloves and distributed hand sanitiser to candidates.
Officials said things went smoothly today, despite a few candidates being absent.
(Soundbite, SO KWOK-SANG, Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority)
"We have five candidates who reported not feeling well, it's actually reported before the exam. So we knew early on that these five candidates would not be able to attend the exam."
Around 3,000 students sat through today's exam, but there will be many more candidates starting from Monday.
That's when four core subjects - English, Chinese, Math and Liberal Studies - will be tested.
A total of more than 50,000 candidates are expected to sit exams over the next month.
All DSEs were delayed from March, due to the virus.
(Voxpop)
"We did get more time to revise, but things were dragged out for a month and it wasn't playtime for us. I just wanted to get this exam done and dusted."
Hong Kong may be among the first places in the world to host these kind of exams during the virus outbreak.
But despite the risk, these students say it is worth it to make sure they don't have to miss out on a place at university.
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