The annual university enrolment begins today. This process, lasting two months, involves millions of graduates from senior high schools who have passed the college entrance exam.

The Ministry of Education has reiterated that it will make every possible effort to stop irregularities and corruption in this process.

The ministry, enrolment offices at various levels and universities have all made public their hotlines for people to report irregularities or corruption and lodge complaints.

What should be welcomed is the promise the ministry has made to the public that all policies concerning enrolment will be published on the Internet and in newspapers, and that the names of all those students enrolled as ones with expertise in certain areas such as music or sports will be made public.

Enrolment offices at various levels, universities and even senior high schools are also required to make public the names of those students who have been enrolled.

Only in this way will public supervision be truly realized.

Students and their parents are advised to carefully study the relevant policies and all the information provided by both enrolment offices and universities so they will not be trapped by swindlers.

This is quite important because swindlers usually take advantage of parents who want to try every means possible to get their children into a university even when their scores are not high enough.

The Ministry of Education has made it quite clear that those students who squeeze their way into universities through connections or other illegal channels will not be registered in the computerized registration system. This means they will not receive diplomas.

Some 30,000 students failed to get registered in the computerized system because they were admitted through illegal channels. They were mostly in non-State colleges and had been trapped by illegal brokers.

To crack down on illegal brokers, efforts must be made to penalize those working in enrolment offices or are in charge of enrolment work at universities who collaborate with brokers to swindle students of their money.

The ministry has vowed that anyone found bending enrolment rules will be dealt with according to disciplinary rules or put on trial if their wrongdoing is considered serious enough to be a criminal offence.

With more transparency, more effective supervision and a computerized enrolment programme, we have reason to believe that the entire university enrolment process will ensure fair play for all students.

(China Daily June 28, 2006)