Forget the "Super Girls" and all the American Idol-like talent shows -- China's next top models will have to know everything about giant pandas.

The final round of a global competition for panda keepers started Wednesday afternoon in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province.

Twelve panda enthusiasts from 11 countries have entered the final round, half of whom will take one of the world's coolest jobs and spend four weeks caring for pandas in Chengdu.

They will answer a wide range of questions on panda care, name eight kinds of bamboo, stage an artistic performance to demonstrate their personality and give a presentation about pandas.

The 12 finalists made mooncakes for pandas last week.

Their performances will be evaluated by a five-member expert panel, which consists three renowned panda researchers, World Wide Fund for Nature official Jing Hui and John Banovich, an avid wildlife painter from the United States.

Panda researcher Zhang Zhihe, whose major achievements included artificial insemination and breeding of pandas, said he would give priority to the candidate's potential in panda care and protection. "These can be judged from the video clips taken over the past week," he said.

The 12 finalists, selected by netizens and wildlife conservation experts from about 62,000 applicants, arrived in Chengdu on Sept. 23 for training at the Chengdu Research Base for Giant Panda Breeding. They learned to clean panda enclosures, prepare bamboo, fruit and corn bread, and build outdoor climbing facilities.

They all worked hard, hoping to stand out in the final test. David Algranti, from France, practised his guitar whenever he had some time, hoping to excel in the artistic performance part. "All I want is to live with pandas ... take care of pandas," he said.

Yumiko Kajiwara, from Japan, on the other hand, arranged "secret" chats with zookeepers at the Chengdu base to get more panda care tips.

"I'd say all of them have done a wonderful job," said Prof. Zhang Anju, a leading panda researcher. "It will be hard to decide who is better."

The six "pambassadors," who will be named later Wednesday, will spend a month working as panda keepers in Chengdu.

They will also blog about their experiences at pandahome.com in a campaign to raise awareness of the endangered creature's plight.

They will also have the opportunity to witness the birth of panda cubs.

The project was launched by the Chengdu research base in collaboration with the World Wide Fund for Nature.