This book explores the causes of student poverty in China and examines how the Chinese student support system might respond to the needs of students from disadvantaged backgrounds. It shows that the countrys "Great Leap Forward" style expansion of the higher education system since 1999 has not been fully funded by public resources, a discrepancy that is the main cause of student poverty. The task of tackling student poverty in the foreseeable future will thus mainly rely on the student support system, which is not working satisfactorily.