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Colleges to enroll more from poor regions

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-01-10 19:17

China raised the college enrollment quota to students from five less developed regions from 35,000 last year to 60,000 this year, said the Ministry of Education in Beijing Saturday.

The country adopted a policy last year to help more students from less developed regions to go to college.

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This summer, colleges and universities in 11 provinces and municipalities such as Shanghai, Tianjin and northeastern Liaoning Province, will have to take in 60,000 freshmen from Inner Mongolia, southwestern Guizhou Province, northwestern Gansu Province, central Henan Province and eastern Anhui Province, said a ministry statement.

The quota did not include the students enrolled by local universities in these five provinces and regions.

The enrollment ratio, a percentage of students enrolled in colleges out of the total candidates, varied among different regions, the statement said, though it did not give the exact ratios.

"Through this program, we hope to close the gap between developed and less developed regions and help more young people from poor regions to enjoy the access to higher education," the statement said.

This year, colleges across the country plan to enroll a total of 6.29 million students, up 4 percent over last year, according to the statement.