2025 Student Aid System Upgraded with Over RMB 390 Billion in Funding
China's student financial aid system will be enhanced in 2025 under a "one exemption, two expansions, three increases" policy, with total funding exceeding RMB 390 billion, up over 14% from 2024. Fiscal input accounts for about RMB 240 billion, while national student loans reach RMB 127.7 billion, a 34% increase. Nearly 160 million students will benefit, up over 5% year-on-year.
In 2025, China's student financial aid policy system will be further improved, summarized as "one exemption, two expansions, and three increases." The "one exemption" refers to the waiver of childcare and education fees for children in their final year of preschool at public kindergartens starting from the autumn semester of 2025. For eligible children enrolled in private kindergartens approved by education authorities, fees will be reduced in accordance with the exemption levels of similar local public kindergartens.
The "two expansions" include, from 2025, extending the Nutrition Improvement Plan in compulsory education to cover county towns in former contiguous destitute areas, and including eligible third-year students in secondary vocational education in the national grant coverage.
The "three increases" take effect from 2025: the average national grant standard for senior high school students will rise from RMB 2,000 to RMB 2,300 per student per year; for central universities, the central government's academic scholarship support for master's students will increase from RMB 8,000 to RMB 10,000 per student per year, and for doctoral students from RMB 10,000 to RMB 12,000 per student per year.
In 2025, total national student aid funding will exceed RMB 390 billion, an increase of over 14% from 2024. Fiscal input will reach approximately RMB 240 billion, accounting for 60% of total aid funds and remaining the primary source. National student loan disbursements will amount to RMB 127.7 billion, up 34% from 2024 and representing about one-third of total aid funds. Student aid investment continues to grow, with fiscal input maintaining a dominant role.
In 2025, nearly 160 million students will receive aid nationwide, an increase of over 5% from 2024. In preschool education, the fee waiver policy will benefit more than 14 million children in their final year. In compulsory education, 18.77 million students from financially disadvantaged families will receive living allowances, and 27.58 million students will benefit from the Nutrition Improvement Plan. In secondary vocational education, 20,000 students will receive national scholarships, 12.79 million will enjoy tuition exemption, and 4.07 million will receive national grants. In senior high school, 4.65 million students will receive national grants, and 1.99 million will enjoy tuition and miscellaneous fee exemptions. In higher education, 210,000 students will receive national scholarships, 1.22 million will receive national inspirational scholarships, 2.64 million will receive postgraduate academic scholarships, 12.71 million will receive national grants, and 8.52 million will take out national student loans.
In 2025, the precision and standardized management of student aid will continue to improve. Data on special student groups will be shared through a unified network, with regular comparisons against data from the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs, and the China Disabled Persons' Federation, while protecting students' personal information. Each school can access the list of students from low-income, extremely poor, disabled, and other special groups by logging into the student aid system. Student aid information will also be available through a single online portal, with the National Smart Education Public Service Platform and the Ministry of Education's government service platform offering functions for querying aid policies, verifying national scholarship certificates, and accessing historical aid records, enabling students to clearly understand the programs they can apply for and the aid they have previously received.