Some will break the rules for a chance to study in the United States.

CNN reports.

Fraud frenzy? Chinese seek U.S. college admission at any price

Beijing (CNN)Jessica Zhang, a 21-year-old Chinese student from Jiangsu Province, says her English wasn’t strong enough to fill in her U.S. college admission form.

So her parents paid three consultants $4,500 to fill out the application, write her personal essay and compose teacher recommendation letters.

They also arranged her visa and communicated with her prospective colleges — eight ranked between 40 and 100 on the U.S. News & World Report College rankings.

“It would have been too much hassle if I had applied myself,” says Zhang, which is not her real name.

In August, she’ll start her undergraduate career with an open major at a Midwestern university, in the United States. She says she’s unaware that her application could be considered fraudulent and even get her expelled.

Grey area
With the promise of English-language fluency, a U.S. college education is increasingly attractive for many students and employers. And as Chinese incomes grow, more affordable for parents.

Using agents or consultancies to apply to college has been a common practice since U.S. universities and colleges started recruiting in China extensively about eight years ago.