Several ministry-level departments, including the Ministry of Education, the National Health Commission and the National Development and Reform Commission, have responded recently to issues of public concern.

Independent enrollments by universities under stricter control

Universities must adopt stricter rules when enrolling students independently to ensure equality and fairness, the Ministry of Education said in a notice on Friday.

It said universities must avoid overreliance on criteria such as research papers, patents and results in competitions organized by intermediary organizations as qualifications. They are also required to reduce quotas for students admitted through independent enrollment procedures.

Universities must establish special expert groups to carefully scrutinize applications, conduct stricter reviews of submitted material, and make enrollment procedures more transparent.

The ministry also vowed strict punishment for those violating the rules, including students and school officials, in line with laws and regulations.

The practice of independent enrollment by universities was introduced more than a decade ago as an alternative to the national college entrance exam. Tests of a student's academic ability and personality are usually required. This year, universities will start the independent enrollment process in March, the ministry said.