From the Jump Level Up! Vol. 4 is a section "Baduk Around the World." Regarding college education benefits from Baduk strength in China & Thailand it says:


I found this interesting. I know there are plenty of scholarship and college fund opportunities available for chess players in the West, but I haven't heard of chess strength going so far as to wholly affect college admissions (though I am admittedly not much privy to the chess world). Also, it makes me curious as to how Western colleges might view this possibility were it proposed to the same extent that it has been implemented in these Eastern colleges. Do you think there's a chance for this to happen in any Western colleges in the coming years?

You'll probably need a much bigger population of go players in the West before that happens.

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Go is such a beautiful game.

This also makes sense in the way that China might be compensating for all their insei who simply don't make it to pro. They've lost a whole lot of precious time along the way, and need all the help they can get to make it into a good university.

They must also realize that to be 6-dan, you just can't be a slacker.

A few years ago, there was an interview with some Chinese professional. (I can't remember his name, or the name of the interviewer, though the latter may have been John Fairbairn.) Among other things, he was asked if he had any promising pupils. He said, yes, there was one who was likely to become a strong professional. But there was another, whom he thought would "only" pass the 1-dan exam, but could advance no further. (And so, he would not really be able to make a decent living as a go player, at least in China.)

The interviewer asked how the parents felt about this, and whether this was wasting the boy's time. The Chinese professional said that, yes, he had explained the situation to the boy's parents, and they understood and agreed with his opinion. But they were fine with this. According to them, if the boy had a professional shodan certificate, he could probably gain admission to any university in China, even the most elite and prestigious ones.

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And the go-fever which is more real than many doctors’ diseases, waked and raged...
- Rudyard Kipling, "The Light That Failed" (1891)

It makes sense. Especially when considering a potential student who perhaps isn't going to reach top rank in go because lacking a single minded commitment to go, having other academic interests.

Reaching even the lowest pro level (or even the upper levels of amateur play) indicates both intelligence and ability to focus/study.

Is there much competition between University Go teams? Having strong players might be directly important to the Unis rather than just demonstrating the candidates value in an abstract sense.

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I am John. John-I-Am.

Fair point. But I don't think universities would be allowed to use a certified pro in their team.

I don't think is just Go, but athletics and other disciplines maybe the arts. It makes sense that it is to compensate for the intensive training, endorsed by the society, that interferes with academics, however I also gather from my in-laws that it isn't all that much of a help. A big problem is that the admission process is so corrupt anyway.

I think Liu Yuanbo 2p aka MilanMilan played on his Beijing University team. (He was studying there and no longer an active pro).

I think the information about bonus points is outdated - I seem to recall that 5 dan is no longer sufficient.