BEIJING - A total of 1,780 educational institutions and projects made possible through international cooperation were approved by China as of January, the Ministry of Education said Thursday.

Of the total, 775 are at the college level or above, said Zhang Xiuqin, head of the ministry's Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges, at a press conference.

"International cooperation in education still needs to be improved and the ministry will further strengthen supervision, as well as offer more guidance for education cooperation," Zhang said.

In 2012, four provinces carried out pilot programs to assess international education institutions.

China will also introduce a general mechanism to assess educational institutions that are globally recognized, Zhang said.

China currently has five international education institutions at the college level or above.

The ministry said three similar colleges were approved in 2012.

According to the ministry, about 10 percent of Chinese high school graduates do not take college entrance exams. The proportion has remained more or less the same for the last six years due to the growing popularity of studying abroad.