The survey, conducted by Lixinfang, a student mental health centre at Shenyang Normal University, shows almost half of all undergraduates' daily spending goes on their girlfriends or boyfriends.

The rest is spent on their lodgings, 30 per cent, hairdressing and clothes, 5 per cent, and study fees, 3 per cent.

This means money spent on their partners comes in at No 1, while money spent on study comes last.

The surveyors interviewed 1,000 college students in Shenyang, Liaoning Province.

"This result is astonishing. We never knew that they spent so much on their partners rather than on their studies," said Zou Rulian, director of the centre.

"It is their own business as they are all over 18 years old, but the point is that they live on their parents, not themselves," said Zou.

According to the survey, 69 per cent of students spent over 10,000 yuan (US$1,250) a year, a figure that included tuition fees and daily expenditure.

Statistics from the Shenyang Statistics Bureau show last year the average monthly salary in Shenyang was 1,366 yuan (US$171), 134 yuan (US$17) less than the national average.

"One undergraduate costs more than half the annual income of average families in Shenyang. But students do not spend on study, they spend on something else," added Zou.

Wang Dan, at the local Dongbei University, spends around 1,000 yuan (US$120) every month, with over half going on dating.

He receives 700 yuan (US$86) from his family each month. In addition, Wang has part-time jobs, like tutoring a high school student, to bring in extra income.

"It is my duty to buy my girlfriend food, clothes and other things. I'd like to do more part-time work to afford this," he said.

今年暑期的一项调查表明，沈阳大学生将大部分的生活费花在了自己的女友或男友身上。

这项由沈阳师范大学“理心坊”学生心理健康中心开展的调查显示，本科生每天近一半的开销都花在了女友或男友身上。

剩下的生活费中，30％用于住宿，5％用于美发和买衣服，而只有3％用在学习上。

由此看出，大学生的“恋爱”开支在几项开支中位居第一，而学习开支却最少。

调查者们对辽宁省沈阳市的1000名大学生进行了访问。

“理心坊”心理健康中心主任邹如莲说：“调查结果让人很惊讶。我们以前根本不知道大学生将这么多的钱花在了自己的女友或男友身上，而不是用来学习。”

邹主任说：“这是他们自己的事，因为他们都是超过18岁的成年人了，但关键是他们现在还是靠父母供养，自己还没有经济来源。”

据调查，69％的大学生一年的学费和生活费达到1万元以上。

沈阳统计局的有关数据显示，去年，沈阳市居民的平均月工资为1366元，比全国平均水平低134元。

邹主任说：“在沈阳，供养一个大学生的年开销占普通家庭年收入的一半以上。但是大学生没把钱花在学习上，而是花在了谈恋爱上。”

东北大学学生王丹每月花销1000月左右，其中有一半多用于谈恋爱。

王丹父母每月给他700元生活费。此外，他自己还做一些兼职赚外快，如，当家教。