People practice Taiji at Chenjiagou Village in Wenxian County, central China's Henan Province, Oct. 29, 2015. (Xinhua/Zhu Xiang)

Compulsory Taichi course for a college diploma? Yes! It's not a Fool's Day joke. A university in northwest China has required its students to do so for almost 20 years.

Xi'an Jiaotong University in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province began to require students to learn Taichi, an ancient Chinese martial art, as a compulsory course in 1998.

Only students who pass the 24-form Taichi course can receive diplomas, according to Wang Yunbing, professor of the university's physical education center.

Wang said that the martial art is not only a way for physical exercise, but also has a connotation of ancient Chinese philosophy.

In addition, the university has selected Taichi as a compulsory course partly because it doesn't need special venues, according to Wang.

"We learn the basics of Taichi on the campus and many of us are interested in it. You can see students practice the martial art all around the campus," said a student surnamed Tang.

The Taichi course at Xi'an Jiaotong University has made news again following recent media report about Tsinghua University's decision to make swimming a compulsory course.

Tsinghua University in Beijing will soon be requiring undergraduates to pass a swimming test before receiving graduation certificates. According to the requirement that will take effect this year, all students except those with skin ailments and aquaphobia must pass the test.

Chinese schools and colleges are paying more attention to students' health and fitness, stressing all-around academic, physical and moral development.

Actually, swimming and Taichi are selective courses in many other colleges. Xidian University, also based in Xi'an, made swimming course a prerequisite for getting the bachelor's degree in the 1990s, but then changed it to a selective course because the increasing number of students need more swimming pools.