China's universities and colleges enrolled 2.6 million freshmen this year, 800,000 more than last year.

The figure represented admission of more than 60 percent of the total applicants, according to the Ministry of Education.

Most of the freshmen chose to major in science and engineering, administration, liberal arts, and medicine.

Officials with China's Ministry of Education said that China plans to increase the number of university students to 16 million in the five years to 2005, compared with a total enrollment of over 11 million in the 1996-2000 period.

According to a special plan for educational development, university students will account for 15 percent of school students in 2005. By that time, the number of postgraduates will reach 600,000.

(Xinhua News Agency November 28, 2001)