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Liang Shi preparing for exams: "I really want to go to university and become an intellectual"
Photo: Liang Shi / AFP
It is a record number: almost 13 million pupils have started the entrance examination for university studies in China. Among the examinees of the so-called Gaokao this year is the self-made millionaire Liang Shi.
The 56-year-old is trying for the 27th time to pass the exam, which, according to state media, is said to be the "world's hardest" of its kind.
"It's an unpleasant thought that I never made it to university," Liang told AFP in the run-up to the exam. "I really want to go to university and become an intellectual."
Economic success, but no university degree
The Gaokao is considered the most important test in the lives of many Chinese. It decisively determines the professional path of life. Every year, a great deal of effort is put into the up to four-day exams to prevent examinees from cheating and to get them to the tests on time.
Liang, now a successful entrepreneur, made his first attempt to pass the Gaokao at the age of 16 and study at the prestigious Sichuan University. So far, however, he has not achieved the required number of points in all attempts - now he is making another attempt.
bbr/AFP