Taking the plunge in a new world

Wu Weiliang is the first person in his family to attend a key university. The Henan province native, who comes from a low-income family, studied day and night for three years to achieve his dream and eventually entered Chongqing University in 2011, majoring in Civil Engineering.

"University life gives me a different world. I make friends with people from different backgrounds," the 24-year-old said.

Last year, Wu and 24 other undergraduates from low-income families traveled to the United States for a monthlong study camp, proving the students from universities across China with invaluable experience of studying overseas.

"Some of my classmates from primary and middle school might never get to travel abroad in their entire lives. They may be migrant workers for the next five or 10 years," he said, adding that whenever he returns home, the neighbors say, "See, the college student is back."

"I am very proud," Wu said, reflecting on his tough path to a prestigious college. Wu attended a boarding high school, where the tuition fees were waived in light of his high grades in the school entrance exam.

"We got up between 5 to 5:30 in the morning and exercised. Then we went to the classrooms for an hour of morning study. Breakfast was at 7 am. From 7:50 am to midday, we had classes. The lunch break was two hours. Afternoon classes started at 2 pm and ended at 5:30 pm. After dinner, there were classes from 7 pm to 10 pm," Wu said. The six years he spent at the school have left indelible memories.

Wu scored 633 point out of a possible 750 in the 2011 gaokao, the national university entrance exam.

He remembered that the hardest days for his family came when his older sister was in a boarding high school.

"My sister returned home once a month and my parents would give her 100 yuan ($16) for her monthly living stipend. My parents were always worried before my sister returned, because they needed to borrow money from relatives and friends. The situation became better when my sister started to work," he said, adding that his sister, now 28, also studied at university and works in electronics in Suzhou, Jiangsu province.

The Class of 2011 in the School of Civil Engineering at his university has more than 400 students, about a quarter of them from low-income families. Wu said that compared with students from urban areas, he had fewer opportunities before entering university.

"For example, they (the urban students) are able to play the piano or other instruments, but I can't, because I never had contact with those things before," he said, adding that university life presented him with many opportunities to embrace new experiences.

"At the study camp in the US, I made many good friends, students who are top in their schools. We remained friends after the program, and that's widened my perspective and enriched my life," he said.

Now, he's applying for internship at a real estate company, and is quietly confident he'll land the job: "I have a clear goal for my future. I'll start work after graduation, but I want to have my own company some day."