A
Chinese Professor
23 September
2006
Recently an associated
professor with China’s prestigious
Beijing University published his personal
financial details on the Internet. Here
is his balance sheet:
Monthly
income:
- Monthly
wage after tax: 1,918 yuans
(roughly 240 usd)
- Allowance:
1,368 yuans (roughly 170 usd)
/ month
- Other
teaching incomes and
allowances: 1,500 yuan
(roughly 190 usd) / month
Total monthly
income: 4,786 yuans (600 usd, or
800 aud)
Monthly
expenses:
- Son’s
high school fees (including
tutorial fees, textbooks
costs, non-local citizen
levies, as well as
transportation, lunch and
school uniform expenses):
1,400 yuans (175 usd)
- Daughter’s
kindergarten fee: 680 yuans
(85 usd)
- Patrol:
1000 yuans (125 usd)
- Highway
levy: 30 yuans (4 usd)
- Internet
access fee (at the office):
20 yuans (2.5 usd)
- Meal:
1,425 yuans (180 usd)
Total monthly
expenses (without mortgage):
4555 yuans (570 usd, or 760 aud)
Monthly
closing balance: 4,686
– 4,555 = 131 yuans (16 usd, or 22
aud), just enough to order a home
delivered pizza plus 1.25 litre of
coke.
The reason that he exposed
his personal info is to respond to the
increasing criticisms from the public of
the university teachers spending more
time on commercial activities than doing
teachings.
"Can’t you folks
see?" The professor argued bitterly,
"I’m virtually doing volunteer
work for the university. Without other
sources of income, I can hardly
survive."
But instead of quieting down
the criticism, he’s stirring more
excitement among his critics.
By any standards, some said,
a monthly income of 4,700 yuans is above
the average income level in China, and if
this justifies his lack of devotion to
his work, then teachers in high schools
and primary schools shall have little
reason to dedicate to their students.
Others reminded him that some village
teachers in poor regional areas only got
500 yuans ($60 usd) a month. Still more
told him get lost, "Pray, find
yourself a consulting job with a
cooperate company, and vacant the
position for others willing to
teach."
The Nameless
Lake
A scene in Beijing
University
It is a university that
is never tired of positioning itself
at the centre of China’s political
storm and social controversy.
China
stories are told at wenhousecrafts.com
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