AMONG THE 4,380 students admitted by Peking University this year, more than 700 are from the less developed regions, the highest number in recent years. China Youth Daily commented on Tuesday:

Over the past years, many Chinese universities have stepped up their efforts to grant students from rural areas easier access and favorable enrollment policies. But rural students still find it difficult to enter the top universities, such as Peking University.

After the college entrance examination resumed in 1978, nearly one-third of the students at Peking University were from underdeveloped areas over the following two decades, but the ratio dropped to just 10 percent from 2000 to 2011, rising to less than 20 percent this year.