Colleges ease rules for switching majors

Several higher education institutions in China have announced that their students will be allowed to change majors without preconditions starting with the upcoming autumn semester, a move that they said is aimed at exploring the students' interests and respecting their secondary choice after enrollment.

Shanghai Jiao Tong University said its students could apply for the switch during their freshman, sophomore and junior years, and transfers between the main campus in the city's Minhang district and the medical school in Huangpu district will also be allowed.

The "zero threshold", or no restriction, for switching majors lays greater emphasis on students' comprehensive abilities and personal development, the university said at a news conference held recently to introduce its undergraduate admissions policy.