A psychological interference mechanism should be set up to free
college students from mental problems particularly driven by a
yawning financial disparity on campus and a slim job market,
Chinese lawmakers said in Beijing during the parliamentary
session.
"Neither students, nor schools are well prepared for the mental
crisis prevailing on campus," which has forced three students to
commit suicide in a university in south China's
Guangdong Province, said Zheng Ya, a deputy to the National
People's Congress (NPC)
and an official with the Nanjing University of Science and
Engineering based in the capital of east China's
Jiangsu Province.
The gap between the haves and have-nots among students becomes
increasingly prominent in recent years.
Those with affluent family backup are lavish and enjoy absolute
psychological advantage. However, the needy students always feel
themselves inferior although they are able to finish study with
social and school subsidies.
Some 1 million impoverished students were registered in China,
about 10 percent to 15 percent of the total number of college
students, according to statistics from the Ministry of
Education.
Rich students spend an average 1,000 yuan (US$125) in monthly
consumption while the poor was registered with a minimum of 100
yuan (US$12.5) per month.
Finding a job has been another big challenge for college
graduates in recent years.
College students who used to feel reassured of their future
career are more and more frustrated by the hiking unemployment
rate, according to Gu Xiaosong, an NPC deputy from another Jiangsu-
based university.
Nearly 930,000 college students failed to sign working contracts
in 2005 upon graduation, accounting for about 27.6 percent of the
3.38 million in total.
A record 4.13 million students nationwide are expected to
graduate from universities this summer, an increase of 730,000 over
last year and 1.15 million more than in 2001, according to the
Ministry of Education.
About 27 million college students will graduate between 2006 and
2010, an annual increase of at least 700,000.
"Many universities are offering psychological consultation
services, but more efforts should be made in preventing the
occurrence of serious problems," Gu urged on the sidelines of the
ongoing NPC annual session.
Job, economy and scores are among the top causes of
psychological diseases among college students, which are followed
by social communication and sentimental problems, according to a
survey conducted by a Guangdong-based psychological consultative
committee for universities.
Zhu Shanping, an NPC deputy and a foreign language teacher in
Jiangsu, called on universities and social organizations to join
hands to ensure mental health for students.
(Xinhua News Agency March 9, 2006)