Students are flocking to the country's top universities after the Ministry of Education reintroduced its policy of free training for those aspiring to become teachers.

Six institutions of higher learning under the administration of the ministry enrolled 12,000 students this year.

The free training courses for normal university students were abolished in the early 1990s when a market-oriented mechanism was introduced.

Now, many more top students are opting for normal universities, turning down other education opportunities that come at a premium, Yang Chen, a teacher with the Central China Normal University in Wuhan, Hubei Province, said.

To be eligible, students must agree to work at primary or middle schools for at least 10 years after graduation and spend the first two years in rural schools.

"The requirement has not deterred students. Six from my school competed for one place," Yang was quoted as saying by Chutian Metropolis News.

In East China Normal University in Shanghai, 37 candidates competed for one free education place.

The policy is designed to benefit students from the countryside and from the central and western regions.

At Southwest University in Chongqing, about 68 percent of those who applied for training course were from the rural areas. At Beijing Normal University, rural applicants comprised 54 percent.

"The new policy shows that the government is playing its role in addressing the imbalance in rural-urban education resources to achieve a fairer education system throughout the country," Wang Xuming, a spokesman from the Ministry of Education, said.

The cost of the training program will be covered by the central budget, and will be extended to more colleges across the country if it proves successful, Wang said.

China currently has more than 10.43 million middle and primary school teachers. Many schools, particularly rural one, are short of competent teachers.

Education at most universities - tuition, accommodation and other expenses - costs a student about 10,000 yuan ($1,300) a year.

Students who wish to opt out of the course in mid-stream, must pay back the tuition fees. They also face a contract violation fine.

The central government has asked local education departments and schools to ensure jobs for these students on graduation.

(China Daily 07/27/2007 page4)