A laptop, a desktop, a 90,000-yuan ($13,000) bank deposit and a Santana car. These are the rewards 19-year-old Yang Yang received for squeaking past the entry cut-off point for the less-than-stellar Shanghai University this year.

He cleared his driving test over the summer and had his license ready for the freshman semester that began this month.

A freshman of the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics drives to school on the opening day of the new semester. Jiang Dong

He was not alone. Lines of new cars swarmed into campuses nationwide with their young owners.

In a country where the majority of the population lives in the vast rural areas and ekes out a simple life by toiling in fields or at city construction sites, these young faces in brand-name clothes and luxury cars stand out most incongruously.

This simultaneous emergence of the "rich second generation" and "poor second generation" has triggered a heated debate in the Chinese media.

While the lavishing of gifts by the country's nouveau riche on their children is seen as beyond reproach, the sharp contrast they present with the poor students, who have never seen 10 100-yuan-notes at one time, is arousing concern over the yawning wealth gap.

Yang was born and grew up in a wealthy family. His father studied at Yale and works in a hospital, while his mother owns a large mechanical and electrical equipment company.

While he had planned to drive his car to school on the very first day to show his driving skills, he changed his mind at the last minute.

"My classmates will definitely think I am very rich. People who make friends with me may actually be eyeing my money, or some may think I am trying to show off," he says.

So he decided to drive only after school or at weekends.

Pang Wenqi of the Beijing Zhongshi Yuanyang Automotive Sales & Service Company says that this past summer vacation, the company received three enquiries from parents planning to buy cars for their college-age children.

According to a survey by the Xinhuaxin International Information Consultation Company of 2,959 students, 46.6 percent of those at university have cars.

The survey also shows that 75.8 percent of these cars are bought by immediate family members or relatives, and only 16.8 percent students put in their own money from part-time jobs, stock market investments or earnings from other businesses.

Li Xue, a second-year graduate student of Journalism in Tsinghua University, owns a brand new white Toyota Corolla - bought by her parents. The 23-year-old has already been driving for more than five years.

Her home, located in the southeastern part of Beijing, is far from school and is not connected by a subway line. Before she got the car, commuting between home and school took up a lot of her time.

"Owning a car offers a lot of convenience. I also help out my friends, like when we do late nights or go shopping," says Li.

"I do not think of it (owning a car) as showing off. If our economic condition allows it, and makes commuting more convenient, why should we say no to a car," she says.

As for the price, according to the Xinhuaxin survey, most of the student cars come under the less than 150,000-yuan category. Of those surveyed, 14.1 percent chose prices of less than 80,000 yuan; 25.2 percent favored 80,000 yuan to 120,000 yuan; and 16.5 percent went for cars over 120,000 yuan.

Since most students bought cars for transport convenience, brands such as Santana, Jetta, Bora, Fit, and Vios were popular choices.

But luxury cars can also frequently be seen on campuses, for some students find it below their dignity to be seen driving economical cars. Dai Yuhuan of Shenzhen is one of them.

Dai drives a Mercedes S500, which costs more than 1.5 million yuan. It is a gift from his parents.

The school Dai attends is considered an "aristocratic" one that attracts students from wealthy families in the Pearl River Delta area in Guangdong province.

"Students who have cars are very common there, and quite a few of the cars are luxury brands. There's nothing alarming about it," Dai says.

"Though I overhear some people say I am flaunting my wealth, I don't care. What matters to me is the comfort of driving. An expensive car not only looks good but also performs well, which is really pretty cool," he adds.

Most universities, though, take a dim view of cars on campus.

In Shanghai Fudan University, for example, student cars are not allowed to enter the campus; even working professionals who head back to school for an MBA have to park outside.

What's more, most of the roads outside campus are designed to be one way, dealing a blow to many students' car dreams.

According to Ji Kaifeng, a teacher at Shanghai Jiaotong University, the number of registered student cars stands at less than 10, and includes an Audi A6. The car owners are all post-graduate and doctoral students.

"We offer a free shuttle-bus and bicycle rental service on campus. Our students don't really need to drive cars," he adds.

According to Liu Ping, a professor from Shenyang Normal University, although many families can afford a car now, it is still a luxury item.

"It will definitely prompt comparison among studentsand can have quite a bad influence on students from poor families," he says.

The flaunting has indeed triggered off some hatred.

A college student in Zhengzhou, central China's Henan province, who often showed off in front of others and drove his Buick to school, was kidnapped by his schoolmate.

The attitude of parents is a major factor in whether or not students own cars. The majority still oppose the idea of giving a car to their children as they enter college.

"Private cars are not yet that common in China. It will not help students integrate into student life. Even if I can afford it, I won't buy one for my daughter," says 46-year-old Zhao Zhili, whose daughter is a second-year college student in Dalian.

Safety is also a big concern with student drivers. "Youngsters like driving very fast. And most students are new drivers who lack driving skills and this raises the risk of accidents," says Meng Kunyu, of the Xuanwu traffic police station in Beijing.

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