The Ministry of Education has issued a plan to reform the current university enrollment system, including allowing high school students to take the national college entrance exam a second time to try to improve their scores, The Beijing News reports.

Some provinces already have been doing this. Eastern China's Zhejiang Province, for example, holds English listening tests in March and September before the national college entrance is administered. Students can take both tests, and the higher score will be included in the final results of their college entrance exams. Tianjin Municipality also holds an English listening test ahead of the national exam in March to reduce student stress.

Furthermore, the ministry's plan requires higher educational institutions to pay more attention to students' comprehensive abilities and their performance during their high school years.

Wang Wei, Vice Director of the National Education Development Research Center, said although the ministry laid out some new reform principles, more time was needed to put the concrete measures into effect nationwide.

China's college entrance exam is held once a year in June. It is the only method by which students are selected for further study in universities, institutes and vocational schools.