A Study Of The Problem Concerning Poor College Students In The New Period

Guiding Principles for Earnestly Completing the Identification of College Students Whose Families are Financially Difficult in Institutions of Higher Learning by Ministry of Education (MOE) and Ministry of Finance. (MOE and MOF [2007]NO.8) point out that poor college students refer to those students in Institutions of Higher Learning whose families are financially difficult are unable to pay the basic fees for studies and life while studying at university with the funds collected by the students themselves and their families.The problem of poor college students is a major issue accompanying the economic restructuring and institutional reform of colleges and universities. With the development and reform of higher education cause, higher education in China has made great strides from elite education to mass education. According to figures published by MOE, by the year 2008, the overall scale of higher education at various levels amounted to 29.07 million while the gross enrollment ratio reached 23.3%. As enrollment expands, more poor students can get access to institutions of high learning. Besides, the charge system is implemented and fee schedules increase, there is a trend that the number of poor students is on the rise yearly. Statistics by MOE shows that by 2007, students whose families are financially difficult occupied about 20% of the total number of college students, among which students who are extremely poor account for 8% to 10% of the total. Thus, the problem of poor college students has become a hot issue in the course of higher education development, which should not be ignored by our society. In addition, how to help poor college students successfully complete their studies through the research into the afore-mentioned problem is a major part of sticking to the "People-First" approach and conscientiously implementing the Scientific Outlook on Development. It is a great thing to safeguard the fundamental interests of the mass that more students can go to college, more students can afford to attend college and those eligible young people can graduate smoothly. At present, tens of thousands of college students, including poor students, constitute a major force that can push forward China's modernization drive and create a strong comprehensive national strength in the future. Therefore, the research is of far-reaching significance as it can help change people's mentality, carry out reform and innovation, maintain social stability and development, promote the reform and development of higher education, establish an aid system that can better adapt to the development of institutions of higher learning in the new period and finally ensure the healthy growth of poor students.The major purpose of this research is to analyze the current situation and causes of the problem of poor college students in an all-round way by expounding the definition, accreditation standards and situations of poor college students in the new period. Moreover, based on experience of and inspiration from developed countries in dealing with such a problem, the research attempts to offer its own solutions.The thesis is divided into five parts. The introduction part primarily concerns the reasons for choosing the topic, reviewing relevant literature and presenting research methods. Part two details the present situation and causes regarding poor college students in the new period. The next part, on the basis of the analysis above, discusses experience of and inspiration from developed countries in solving such a problem. The fourth part offers some solutions to the problem of poor college students in the new period, whereas the last part concludes the whole thesis.