It can be seen from the chart that there have been sharp increases in the number of students attending graduate entrance exams in a college in the past decades. As the chart shows, the year 1996 witnessed only 200 students taking part in the exams. In 2001, the number nearly doubled. In 2006, far more students prepared themselves for graduate studies.

　　A number of factors could account for the change in the chart, but the following are the most critical ones. First, thanks to the policy of reform and opening-up, the nation's economy has been developing at a considerably high speed in the past decades. Therefore, the people have more extra money for education. Secondly, other relevant state policies and the boom of higher education provide students with more opportunities to pursue higher degrees. Last but not least, the increasingly fierce competition forces college students to further their study in order to gain more edge of competition.

　　In a word, this chart is a perfect indicator of China's fast expanding higher education. Although many problems have arisen in the process, we have every reason to believe that they can be solved in the near future with effective measures taken.