"Students who receive admission letters from US colleges (tuition waived) can apply to the state for subsidies. Once approved, they can receive 120,000 yuan of living subsidies every year provided by the state." The information has gained wide recognition among students in Tsinghua University. 　　

Starting from next year, the China Scholarship Council (CSC) will kick off the Government-Sponsored Overseas Students Five-Year Program. With this program, about 5,000 students will be sent by the government to study abroad every year, the Ministry of Education and CSC announced recently, as reported by Shanghai Morning Post. 　　

The policy is issued by the state in an attempt to encourage overseas students to come back to make contributions once they finish their study. Students who apply for the subsidies should sign an agreement with the government promising that they will come back. And students who can receive such subsidy vary from college to college, based on what majors they will study.

Students covered by the program include PhD candidates and those covered under the Ph.D. Dissertation Research Program. Once approved, the state will compensate for their round-trip costs for one time and their living expenses in the college. 　

The candidates will be chosen from three channel sources, those sent by the state under the current CSC study programs; those who go abroad under cooperation programs between Chinese and US universities; and individual students who choose colleges by themselves and apply for and obtain the assent from US colleges on tuition waiver. 　

The program will cover mainly colleges and universities under the 985 Project, a program that aims to establish world-renowned colleges and universities in China, with majors being those which are greatly supported and encouraged by the state. The program adheres to the principle that top-notch students in China will be sent to world first-class universities to learn from top-notch tutors. At present, colleges and universities included in the 985 Project are selecting students and making detailed regulations based on the principle of the program.