The essay is about a subject discussed in the “Modern Society in Urban China” course: class subject - “Market economy – the poor, the rich and what’s in between; widening the class gap and the growing middle class in China”.
Xinhua - China’s university tuition 25 times higher than in 1989
www.chinaview.cn 2007-01-12 15:11:20
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-01/12/content_5598419.htm
BEIJING, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) — Tuitions to China’s universities, which range from 5,000 yuan to 10,000 yuan (1,200 U.S. dollars) a year, are about 25 times higher than they were in 1989, according to the China Youth and Children Research Center (CYCRC).
Annual incomes of urban residents have not nearly kept pace with tuition fees, rising only four times what they were at the end of the 1980’s. When increases in the cost of living are considered, the actual increase in urban incomes is only 2.3 times more than in 1989, according to the research center’s report released on Wednesday.
Rocketing tuitions have led to a sharp increase in the number of needy university students who can’t continue their education simply because they can’t afford it, an official with the center said. He quoted a survey by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) that family’s savings are mainly used to cover the cost of education.
Meanwhile, the rate of increase of tuitions is far higher than increased university funding provided by governments, says an official from the center quoting the PBOC’s survey. The center’s report said educational institutions have turned into profit making institutions.
Fang Yi, another CYCRC official, said "We are unable to find excuses for not properly funding education nowadays considering the rapid rise of China’s GDP and increased tax revenues."
The article addresses the increasing costs of academic studies for the Chinese citizens, due to an increase in tuition fees which is un-proportional to the increase in income, resulting in difficulties for the lower class in receiving academic education. The article seems to hold criticism over the Universities’ recent privatization and profit-orientation, which, as the quote in the last paragraph suggests – should maybe get “proper” funding from the government and allow equal chance for all citizens.
This has been an issue in other countries as well, including Israel, where education is perceived to be an essential right that should be open for all, and a subject in which the government should intervene to make sure entrance barriers are not too high.
It is important to note, that the real Chinese problem is much worse, as this article focuses on the problem for the urban population of China, who’s income has raised 2.3 times the income in 1989 while tuition raised a staggering 25 times. I believe that if we take into account all the China countryside, then the problem is 10 times worse. That would mean that getting a proper education, both in urban China but especially in the Chinese rural area, is maybe becoming an impossible task, which would mean pushing even further the gap between social classes in China.
Trying to understand the article’s position, I’m guessing that Xinhua is trying to convey a social message about the moral dilemmas of modern-economy China which – I believe - are a major concern for most Chinese.
Here’s more from Chinese media with China Daily’s “Survey: Hike in university tuition fees dramatic”
By Guo Qiang (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-01-16 14:52
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-01/16/content_784859.htm
The hike in China’s university tuition fees is beyond what people can pay, a survey showed on Monday. The survey prepared by the China Youth Daily revealed as many as 86.1 per cent of the 18,523 respondents believed China’s university tuition fees are too high. A total of 43.7 per cent of respondents agreed the fees should be in accordance with people’s ability to pay.
The fees jumped from 100 yuan (US$12) per semester in 1989 to some 5,000 yuan (US$641) nowadays, a dramatic 25 fold increase in nearly 20 years, state media reported. Two-thirds of students come from impoverished regions and their families make an annual average of 4,000 yuan (US$512).
"It is an indisputable fact that charges for higher education are a bit too high today. Middle- and low-income families are facing difficulties in affording their children’s schooling," the Oriental Morning Post reported. Zhang Baoqing, deputy Minister of Education said the present tuition rates are beyond the financial capacity of most.
Zhang’s words came at a time when China’s university education system is facing growing skepticism in the face of skyrocketing tuition fees and a saturated employment market.
The number of graduates reached a record high of 4.95 million in the past year, according to data released by the Ministry of Education. Employment prospects for the bulk of graduates looked bleak.
As many as 30 per cent, or 1.48 million students will graduate without a job. The plight of graduates competes with that of migrant worker’s harsh living and working conditions for national attention. The average starting monthly salary for an undergraduate is as low as 1,000 yuan (US$128), while that of a migrant worker who generally has a junior school education is 1,100 yuan (US$141).
The cutthroat employment market has driven job hunters to almost beg for jobs, accepting less than favorable conditions just so they can be employed, sparking nationwide speculation over the eight-year university enrollment expansion policy that started in 1999.
In 1998, the number of enrollment was 1.8 million. In 2005, the figure swelled to some five million. Cheng Gengdong, President of the Dalian University of Technology and a member of the Chinese Academy of Science told the New Express the expansion in the number of graduates has reached the psychological and economic limit of the government, society and public, which is hazardous.
China Daily sheds some more light on the complications of the current state of higher education in China, quoting more data about the problem at hand. Of the 4.95 million graduates, about 1.48 million graduate without a job, and most of those who do find jobs get extremely low salaries when compared with the cost of their education. Families from “impoverished regions” pay per semester what they make as a family in a year. The article openly addresses the issue of the fragile social order – “which is hazardous” – and together with the already existent social rank differences and the cost-of-living/studying it is becoming explosive. The survey quoted shows the feelings of the Chinese youth towards this issue which they perceive as social injustice (“in accordance with people’s ability to pay”).
To contrast the Chinese media, here’s the article about the issue by Reuters :
Updated: 5:09 a.m. ET Jan. 12, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16591440/
BEIJING - Tuition fees for Chinese universities have soared over the past two decades and are now the top item on consumer spending lists, state media reported on Friday. Tuition fees, ranging from 5,000 yuan ($641) to 10,000 yuan a year, are more than 25 times those of 1989, the China News Service said, citing a report by the China Youth and Children Research Center.
Under Chinese law, students are liable for only 25 percent of their higher education costs, but in practice parents are often made to pay up to 44 percent, creating a huge burden on many families.
Rising costs have become a major cause of distress among college students and there have been reports that high school graduates from rural areas whose families cannot afford the fees have resorted to suicide.
China withdrew much of the state subsidies to universities, once almost free, in the mid-1990s amid market-oriented reforms. Universities have significantly expanded enrolment but questions of cost and quality have also arisen.
China has one of the world’s highest savings rate at 40 percent and state media have said that could be attributed to families putting money into the "New Three Mountains" - medicine, housing and education.
"Three Mountains" was a term coined by China’s Communist Party to denote feudalism, imperialism and capitalism in the first half of the 20th century. ($1=7.797 Yuan).
Rueters reports the same figures and numbers but has a somewhat different message to convey, focusing on the change from the Communist Socialist China ideals back to the old “Three Mountains – medicine, housing and education”, which “denote feudalism, imperialism and capitalism in the first half of the 20th century”. While the Chinese media focused on the social issues and the Chinese society, Reuters brings a more political aspect discussing this issue as a tension between Communism and Capitalism. Personally, it seems to even have a somewhat ironic statement about China’s current status, torn in between values and facing western Capitalist problems, maybe even looking for a breaking point or suggesting the path in which China is going in.
It is interesting to try and understand the Chinese government view regarding this issue, as it’s unclear what the official message is. While the Research Center officials (supported by the government) raise concern over the current state of things, they also direct their criticism towards the Chinese government. Even more so, with the Chinese media, watched over by the Chinese government, makes a pretty strong statement. Is it an indicator for an upcoming change in Chinese policy regarding academic education? I would guess not, and that if anything this is maybe an indicator for a change to support better savings/loans programs for the masses and addressing those concerns through the “Capitalist” measures.
