Qualification requirements for civil service posts are normally set with reference to qualifications obtainable under the local education system or from local institutions, including Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE), Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (HKCEE) and the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination (HKALE) qualifications.

The HKDSE results are accepted by the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) of the Hong Kong SAR Government for civil service appointment (non-degree civil service grades) purpose. Details are as follows:

A candidate attaining results in five subjects in the HKDSE in any combination of the following will be regarded as having met the entry requirement of 'Level 2 in five subjects in HKDSE' for relevant civil service grades:

• Level 2 in Senior Secondary subjects／‘Attained’ in Citizenship and Social Development
• 'Attained' in Applied Learning (ApL) subjects (subject to a maximum of two ApL subjects), and
• Other Languages subjects*:
• A2 or above in French / German / Spanish;
• N3 or above in Japanese; and
• TOPIK II Grade 3 or above in Korean.

*For Other Languages subjects offered in the 2024 HKDSE and before, question papers of the Advanced Subsidiary level from Cambridge Assessment International Education were used. Results are reported in five grades (a-e). The entry requirement for relevant non-degree civil service grades is Grade e.

Remark: If the applicant holds the HKCEE qualification, the entry requirement for relevant civil service grades is '5 passes in HKCEE'.

A candidate attaining results in five subjects in the HKDSE in any combination of the following will be regarded as having met the entry requirement for ‘Level 3 in five subjects in HKDSE’ for relevant civil service grades:

• Level 3 in Senior Secondary subjects
• ‘Attained with Distinction’ in ApL subjects (subject to a maximum of two ApL subjects), and
• Other Languages subjects#:
  • A2 or above in French / German / Spanish;
  • N3 or above in Japanese; and
  • TOPIK II Grade 3 or above in Korean.

#For Other Languages subjects offered in the 2024 HKDSE and before, question papers of the Advanced Subsidiary level from Cambridge Assessment International Education were used. Results are reported in five grades (a-e). The entry requirement for relevant non-degree civil service grades is Grade c.

Remark: If the applicant holds the HKCEE and HKALE qualifications, the entry requirement for relevant civil service grades is '2A3O'.