BEIJING -- Chinese universities will admit more doctoral students for 2020 to meet a target of 100,000 set by the Ministry of Education (MOE).

Admissions policies unveiled by some universities showed that they will expand doctoral programs compared with last year.

Shanghai Jiaotong University is expected to enroll around 2,500 doctoral students for 2020, 300 more than that of 2019. Renmin University of China opens around 1,000 slots for 131 doctoral programs this year, compared with 940 slots for 130 doctoral programs last year.

The universities with expanded doctoral programs also include Nankai University, Southeast University, Henan University, Guangzhou University and Airforce Medical University.

In 2018, the MOE proposed a plan to increase the number of China's doctoral students to 100,000 in 2020.

According to guidelines jointly issued by departments including the MOE in March, the country will speed up the training of postgraduates in the field of artificial intelligence, enrolling more doctoral students in particular.