"Parents are required to list three choices of kindergartens located in their household registry district. The education department will allocate the kindergarten based on the availability of their preferences. If the enrollment of their first choice is full, then they have to consider the next choice," said a school staff member in charge of enrollment.

Fierce competition for places was also seen in other districts. In some public kindergartens, there were four applicants for each place.

Beijing, Guangzhou and other major cities have also experienced the 20-year cyclical baby boom, with a nationwide peak in births each year since 2006.

"I was born in the 1980s, when a large number of babies were born. Since that time, we have had to compete for almost everything, from kindergartens to school and universities, and even when looking for a job," said a woman surnamed Li, 29, a bank clerk in Beijing.

"My husband and I prefer the public kindergartens, due to their low charges and high reputation, but their number is limited. I'm not sure what will happen," said Zhang Yanmin, a college teacher in Shanghai and mother of a 1-year-old daughter.

Possibly foreseeing the problem, in 2006 the city began to address the high demand for preschool education.