Chinanews, Beijing, March 27 - According to the statistics collected in the education general investigation 2006, there were more than 2.8 million students in private colleges, increasing faster than public colleges.In 2006, there were 278 independent private colleges, 10.3% more than in 2005, and even 109% more than in 2002. Other 318 were jointly founded by private capitals and public colleges, with 1.467 million students.“Private colleges play a vital part in China's education today, as they meet both the needs of the society for competent personnel and the general public for higher education,” said Han Jin, the director of the Planning Division of the Ministry of Education.