The Senior commerce stream is built from four subjects: Business Studies, Bookkeeping and Accounts, Accounting and Economics, taken alongside the compulsory languages and Mathematics.
Two accounting subjects, not one
The point that surprises people coming from another system is that accounting appears twice. Bookkeeping and Accounts deals with recording transactions and producing the basic statements; Accounting goes further into interpretation and the treatment of more complex items. They are separate subjects with separate grades, and a commerce student normally takes both.
Business Studies is about how a firm is organised and run. Economics is the theoretical one — markets, prices, government policy — and is examined by argument rather than by procedure.
Which papers exist in English
Business Studies, Bookkeeping and Accounts, and Accounting are among the subjects offered bilingually: the same syllabus set in Chinese or in English, and the student sits one version.
Economics is Chinese-medium only. There is no English version of that paper. For a commerce student intending to continue in English afterwards, that is worth knowing early — not as a reason to avoid the subject, but because the economics vocabulary they build will be Chinese, and they will meet the English terms for the first time at university unless they meet them somewhere else first.
What it leads to
The commerce stream is the natural route into accounting, finance, banking, business and management degrees, and into professional accounting qualifications afterwards. Many such degrees also want Mathematics at a decent grade, which every stream carries anyway.
Students sometimes ask whether commerce closes the door on science degrees. In practice it does, for the courses that require Physics, Chemistry or Biology — those requirements are named subject by subject and cannot be met from another stream. The reverse combination, a science student adding a commerce subject, depends on the school's timetable rather than on the examination.
Worth asking the school
- Which of the four subjects the school actually runs at Senior level.
- Whether the bilingual subjects are taught in Chinese or English at that school, and whether a student may sit the other version.
- Whether a commerce student may add a subject from another stream, and when that has to be decided.
高中商科由四个科目组成：商业学、簿记与会计、会计学与经济学，另外还有必修的语文科与数学。
会计有两科，不是一科
来自其他学制的人最意外的一点，是会计出现了两次。簿记与会计处理的是记账与编制基本报表；会计学则进一步处理解读与较复杂项目的处理方式。两者是独立科目、各出成绩，商科生通常两科都修。
商业学讲的是一家公司如何组织与经营。经济学则是理论性的那一科——市场、价格、政府政策——考的是论证，而不是程序。
哪些试卷有英文版
商业学、簿记与会计、会计学属于提供双语版本的科目：同一份考纲分华文与英文命题，学生只考其中一个版本。
经济学只有华文版。该科没有英文试卷。对打算之后以英文继续升学的商科生而言，这一点值得及早知道——不是因此要避开这一科，而是因为他建立起来的经济学词汇会是华文的；除非另外补上，否则英文术语要到大学才第一次接触。
之后能走什么路
商科是升读会计、金融、银行、商业与管理学位的自然路线，之后也接得上专业会计资格。这类学位往往同时要求数学有像样的成绩——而数学本来就是各分流都修的科目。
常有人问：读商科是不是就与理科学位无缘。就要求物理、化学或生物的课程而言，实际上确实如此——那些要求是逐科指明的，无法用另一个分流的科目顶替。反过来，理科生加修一科商科，取决于学校的课表，而不是考试制度。
值得向学校问清楚
- 高中阶段学校实际开设四科中的哪几科。
- 双语科目在该校以华文还是英文授课，学生可否报考另一个版本。
- 商科生能否加修其他分流的科目，以及什么时候必须决定。
More in this section本部分其他文章
UEC独中统考 UEC
- What is UEC, and who runs it?什么是统考？由谁主办？
- How is UEC graded?统考如何评分？
- What are the Senior streams, and what is compulsory?高中有哪些分流？哪些科目是必修？
- Which subjects make up the UEC science stream?统考理科包含哪些科目？
- What is English like in UEC, and is it enough?统考的英文是什么样的？够用吗？
- When is the exam, and who may sit it?统考什么时候考？谁可以报考？
- Where is UEC recognised?统考在哪里获得承认？
Next step下一步
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