Rising level of education

In 1982, only 4 percent of the more than 4,000 county-level Party heads held bachelor's degrees or higher.

By the end of last year, 14.4 percent of the more than 500,000 Party village heads had been educated to undergraduate level or higher. Moreover, 44.3 percent of the Party's members have a bachelor's degree or higher, a rise from 30.7 percent in 2006, while the number of members age 35 and younger was 25.4 percent. In 2006, the number was 23.3 percent.

According to a report published on Thursday by the State Council Information Office, the proportion of female members has grown to 25.1 percent, from 19.7 percent in 2006.

Last year, the number of applications was 22.2 million, but "the selection process was stricter", and although the membership growth rate fell by 0.2 percent, the quality of applicants has risen and become more diverse, the report said.

Chen Chunhua joined the CPC as an 18-year-old high school student. She attended a university in China before studying political science in the United States, where she gained a master's degree and was awarded a doctorate this year.

"I didn't ask, but I believe that many of the Chinese students on campus when I was studying for my PhD in the US were Party members," she said. "That's because membership is usually given to outstanding people, who are more likely to have the opportunity to undertake higher education or study abroad."

Of the 800 students in her grade in high school, only two have been accepted as Party members, she said.