Yan Zhen/Shanghai Daily news

Fudan University plans to expand the curriculum of its self-defense course, the only such course taught at a local university, to cover accident prevention and disaster response next semester.
As there is only one teacher at the school qualified to lead the course, it won't expand enrollment beyond the current 30 students, despite strong demand to get into the course.
Course takers can earn a credit point after passing the exam, Fudan teachers said.
The students, most of whom are female, practice basic martial arts skills, such as punching and kicking, on sandbags hung 1.78 meters from the ground, the average height of a male adult.
"We teach some self-protection basics that can help students react as quickly as possible in the face of danger," said Wang Zhen, who teaches the course.
Wang says he imitates various dangerous situation and trains students how to react if someone grabs them by the wrist or attacks them from behind.
Classes are given once a week and students will be asked to hit the sandbag, as well as fighting with each other during the exam, Wang said.
The course has proven popular with students since it was initiated in 2001. It always fills up within several hours of the start of online class selection, school officials said.
About 70 to 80 percent of the applicants are female students, Wang said.
Zhao Lina, a third-year undergraduate student at Fudan, said that martial arts skills can at least frighten people who try to attack or rob her.