Chinese students planning to study abroad can sit for the U.S. college-level Advanced Placement (AP) exam on the mainland starting in May.

The US College Board, which also administers the SAT college entrance test, has authorized seven private educational institutions on the mainland to hold the AP test, English-language China Daily reported Tuesday.

Mainland students had to go to Hong Kong for the exams before the announcement.

"Through the college-level AP exam, Chinese students have more opportunities to earn credits or advanced standing at most US colleges and universities," Huang Donghui, chief of registration at Beijing-based Siwa International School, one of the authorized institutions, was quoted as saying.

With 37 courses and exams across 22 subject areas, AP offers students a head start on college-level work, he said.

"It aims to sharpen student's problem-solving ability, broaden their intellectual horizons and help them stand out," Huang said.

Nearly 3,400 universities in 40 countries currently accept AP exam grades for admission, including four Chinese universities: Peking University, Tsinghua University, Beijing Foreign Studies University and Beijing Language and Culture University.

At least 1.4 million students around the world sat the exam last year for a fee of 84 U.S. dollars.

"Though the exam is not mandatory like the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), it adds weight to the application," Wang Junjie, a Beijing student, said.

The results are graded 1 to 5, with 5 representing excellent college work.

Most American colleges and universities give credits to students who receive a 3 or better on their AP exams. That means they can start with higher-level college classes than students who did not do as well or did not take the tests.

(Xinhua News Agency, March 4, 2008)