Several incidents of fraud in which college students have been victimized have occurred in mainland China. Some students have committed suicide because they were the victims of fraud. China.org, for example, reported on the apprehension of 28 suspects in three high-profile telecom fraud cases that resulted in three student deaths. Two had heart attacks and one committed suicide when they learned they had lost their tuition to telecom fraudsters. Yangtze Evening News reported that due to the rampant fraud, students don’t trust the subsidies (scholarships) that some colleges and universities have set up for the freshmen from poor families in. Animal Science and Technology College of Yangzhou University’s “dream Scholarship” was established for freshmen this year. The recipients have faced a lot of embarrassment.
The report said this scholarship was designed to help families with financial difficulties. In order to investigate the family situation, the counselor contacted the parents of the perspective students individually. Such an investigation has frequently been mistaken for [an investigation into] fraud. Many freshmen or their parents even claimed they would forgo the scholarship.
To resolve the issue, the liaisons working on the scholarships had to video chatting tools to show their true identity.
Source: Central News Agency, September 2, 2016
http://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/201609020344-1.aspx China.org.cn, September 9, 2016 http://www.china.org.cn/china/2016-09/09/content_39274234.htm