Scores of students who have graduated from the school have moved to developed countries for work thanks to skills learned.

However, despite being in the media spotlight, one simple fact has been ignored. Lanxiang is just one of a countless number of vocational schools at which millions of students from rural areas gain skills that help change their destinies. What does help it stand out is its martinetlike student training practices and special incentives for staff members.

Fewer students from rural areas are admitted to competitive high schools compared with their urban counterparts, and the former also have a lower probability of success on college entrance exams, or gaokao, where competition is fierce. The exam has long been described as a "stampede of tens of thousands of soldiers and tens of thousands of horses crossing a single log bridge".

It is regular practice for students' tuition fees to be paid before they start their school studies. However, at Lanxiang this is not the case. The annual tuition fee of 11,000 yuan ($1,600) does not have to be paid immediately, only after a one-month trial study period.

"Most students come to us at about the age of 15. Many have no idea at all about the majors they are going to study. They could change to a major that really interests them during the one-month trial," said Jiang Yan, the school's head of reception, adding that this could help save parents from wasting money.

She also said the school will expel students for bad behavior or who are difficult to manage during the trial period.