The change puts an end to China's 20-year-old restrictions on the age and marital status of people able to sit college entrance examinations, said Qu Zhenyuan, director of the student affairs department of the Ministry of Education.

From this year's national entrance examinations, the rule that hopefuls should be "single and generally under 25 years old" will no longer apply.

"Since I failed the entrance examination 13 years ago, I have been in deep despair because I thought I would not have a chance to attend college," said Cao Ye, who is currently working at a glass factory in east China's Shandong Province. Fortunately, the new regulations will give him a second chance.

In the late 1970s, China removed age and marital status restrictions because many people had missed out on education during the "cultural revolution" (1966-76). But since 1979, because of a shortage of educational resources, priority has been given to youngsters, most of whom have been high-school graduates.

Many people, like Cao, who initially failed the entrance examinations previously, had to give up the chance to go to college.

These people have had no choice but to teach themselves or join correspondence courses when they wanted a higher education. Now, people regardless of their age, can take national entrance examinations along with high-school students, Qu said.

In another change, graduates from secondary vocational schools will also be able to apply to higher educational institutions instead of only being able to apply for higher vocational schools.

These reforms are vital for China to improve all-round development and establish lifelong learning, Qu said.

Another point that needs answering concerns a stipulation which says students studying at college are not allowed to get married. A spokesman with the Beijing Municipal Education Commission said the rule is still in force. However, as the state has removed restrictions on the age of people entering colleges, it is possible this rule might also change.

Qu also rejected misgivings about the new system, one of which is that competition brought about by hopefuls from outside schools will lead to less school students going on to higher education.

(China Daily 04/10/2001)