The Ministry of Education said on Sunday that it had applied to the Academic Degree Commission under the State Council to cancel Harbin University of Science and Technology's qualifications for issuing master's degrees in business administration, because of a cheating scandal that occurred during the university's graduate candidate test in January.

On its website, the Ministry of Education said the university also will have to cut the number of graduate students it recruits from 2015, and it has been urged to reflect on and overhaul its recruiting process to ensure equity in exams and recruitment.

In January, 20 students were found to have cheated in entrance exams for the university's MBA course. The scandal caught the attention of people across the country.