Top universities in China

　　(Words: about 240; Time: 3 minutes )

　　Peking University, Tsinghua University and Zhejiang University have retained their places as the top three Chinese universities, according to a ranking guide released on May 14.

　　The university table, which was compiled by the Wuhan-based Research Centre for China Science Evaluation in Central China’s Hubei Province, evaluates teaching quality, staff-student rate, scientific research and school reputation.

　　Tsinghua University, Peking University and Shanghai Jiaotong University are the top three science schools, while Peking University, Renmin University of China and Beijing Normal University are listed the best three in humanities (人文学科) and social science research.

　　Unlike the previous two annual reports, this year’s guide also gave rankings for 192 specific subjects.

　　Peking University ranked top in philosophy, Chinese literature, history, medical science and natural science. Tsinghua was the best place for engineering, Renmin University of China top choice for economics and law, Beijing Normal University best in education and psychology, while Zhejiang University was the top destination for computer studies.

　　Qiu Junping, the center’s director, said this year’s judgment began in November of 2005 and included 887 colleges on the China’s mainland. Statistics used are from four major sources: government figures, international and domestic databases, government and university websites and authoritative publications.

　　“The guide offers students a full range of information on the best schools in China,” he said. “It is an objective and detailed guide for students choosing full-time degree courses, and it also serves as a reference to government policy makers.”

　　Help:

　　retain v. to keep something; to continue to have something 保持;继续拥有

　　compile v. to produce a book, list, report, etc. by bringing together different items, articles, etc. 编写

　　Try this:

　　1. In the comprehensive survey, _______________ is listed at the top of the rankings.

　　2. According to the passage, if you want to study computer science, _________________ is the best choice.

　　3. According to the passage, if you want to study both philosophy and literature, the top choice is __________________.

　　(Key: 1. Peking University 2. Zhejiang University 3. Peking University)