An education expert called on Chinese universities to fairly share grants for students from poor families in order to protect their personal privacy.

"A series of procedures on determining whether a student qualifies for a grant should be conducted among a certain group of students from poor families and their teachers to ensure fairness. Moreover, universities are responsible for maintaining the personal privacy of those students," said Xiong Bingqi, vice-president of the 21st Century Education Research Institute.

About 15 percent of university students in China come from poor families, he said.