Since 2003, recruitment has provided an alternative for universities to seek out talented students. Universities such as Peking and Tsinghua use this strategy. Currently, there are already 80 universities around the country using their own exams.
Independently created exams have been designed to enable universities to have more freedom in selecting applicants, and give more choices to students. For example, the system provides more opportunities for young people with outstanding skills in specific areas, such as literature, athletics or arts.
When the system was introduced at the first beginning, many people asked if it was fair for students. One parent talks about his concern.
"I still believe in the national exam rather than independent exams. The gauge of the national exam is how much score students earn. However, in independent exams, students are measured according to the subjective feelings of interviewers."
Although the use of independent enrollment has not been free of doubt or suspicion, the exams are now well received, and more and more universities are going to incorporate them into their procedures.
However, Liu Xiping, director of Education Department of Zhejiang province says when it comes to self-enrolled exams, there is still a lot to improve.
"We need to ensure that the exam can reveal the potential and learning ability of students. That's where we can make effort."
Xie Xiaoqing, professor from the Beijing Language and Culture University says the independent entrance exam is still about the memorization ability. It just shows whether a student has crammed adequately.
During the past decade, the self-enrolment practice has been improving as educational authorities, professors from universities and the general public have contributed to improving the process.
Since 2005, many universities started using independent university entrance examinations alongside the national test, to assess students. Currently, university independent enrollment alliance is organized by several alliances such as the one represented by Tsinghua University, Peking University and Shanghai-based Tongji University.
While independent enrollment exams are still something new in China, they have been used for many years in some western countries. For example in the United States, the national entrance exam only constitutes part of what universities require before enrolling students.
Xie Xiaoqing, professor from Beijing Language and Culture University says universities in the US measure student performance in high school first, then scores in the national exam are considered. Student participation in public and charity events, and skills in athletics and arts are also important criteria for consideration.
For CRI, I am Zhang Wan.
