Lin Huiqing, who is in charge of student affairs with the MOE, said this year's college entrance examinations, which will be heldin June for the first time, happened to fall during the special SARS period, which has brought anxiety to the millions of Chinese examinees and their parents.

According to Lin, 6.13 million students will participate in this year's exam, 850,000 more than last year. In the meantime, 22Chinese universities will enroll students independently as a result of educational reform, and examinations given in different provinces and regions will be more diversified in content and point system.

To ensure a smooth proceeding of the examinations, local educational administrations have taken special epidemic preventionmeasures and held online discussions on enrollment and relevant work, said Lin.

The MOE also required Chinese provinces and regions to strengthen examination discipline by using electronic means, carrying out inspections, and setting up report hotlines.

Examinees can have free consulting services from June 10 until the end of June by accessing the official websites, www.chsi.com.cn, www.edu.cn, www.cer.net, and www.col.edu.cn. So far, nearly 500 Chinese colleges and universities have joined the consulting service.

A nationwide network for enrollment will also be put into use this year.

(Xinhua News Agency June 6, 2003)