At a press conference today, China's top advisors urged deepening reform in the higher education sector to turn out more talented graduates and technological results.

Zhang Xiaowen, a former president of Qinghua University, said that although a multi-tier higher education system is taking shape in the nation, and private colleges have been set up to supplement the traditional government-run universities, a set of regulations should be formulated to lend more active support for private colleges and ensure their healthy growth.

A total of 1,200 private colleges have been set up in the nation so far, with 37 of them authorized to issue related diplomas.

Sheng Shituan, president of Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, said that expanding college enrollment calls for reform in the management system of institutions of higher education, and increased government financing.

Zuo Tieyong, President of Beijing Polytechnical University, talked about quality education at the press conference, calling for strengthening moral and ethical education, encouraging a spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship, and improving students' practical abilities.

A reform characterized by measures such as decentralizing and merging is under way in China's higher educational system, and nearly 200 institutions of higher education were handed over to local governments last year alone. Beijing University is also planning a merger with Beijing Medical Sciences University, which is acknowledged by the university president as a way to build a really first-rate international university.