A few weeks ago we pointed out how average tuition at international schools in Beijing has risen to the equivalent of over USD 35,000 a year. But don’t think that it’s just expat schooling that’s getting pricier in China’s burgeoning capital — local parents are shelling out big time as well.

 In what amounts to be an openly accepted (but officially frowned upon) custom, local parents are now paying up to RMB 87,000 (USD 13,600) in "entrance fees" to place their children in selective middle schools outside their local schooling district.

Even more enlightening is that Beijing parents typically spend between RMB 30,000 and RMB 80,000 (USD 4,700 and USD 12,500) per year on additional tutoring.

This is all according to a recent study by the 21st Century Education Research Institute, as reported in Caixin, the business and finance magazine run by respected local media maven Hu Shuli

I suppose it comes as no surprise in a city that now features more RMB-denominated millionaires than any city in China — 170,000 individuals, to be exact.

 We’re also not shocked to learn that European bankers UBS have listed Beijing as the 58th most expensive city in the world in their recent report on the international cost of living.

On the bright side, it’s good news that Shanghai (49th) is still ranked as more expensive than the ‘Jing, while both mainland powerhouse cities are far behind New York City (14th) and Oslo (1st).

The Wall Street Journal’s Real Time Report has an interesting stat distilled from the just-released list of the young and the wealthy by Hurun, China’s well-known compiler of the who’s who of the moneyed set: half of all of China’s under-40 billionaires studied overseas, and 80% want the same for their kids.

The WSJ’s Laurie Burkitt remarks that the combination of wealth and the age-old criticisms of Chinese schooling – too much memorization, not enough critical thinking – are to blame for this seemingly disproportionate exodus of the upper crust towards overseas education:

"While on the surface, China is undergoing a secondary education boom, the country’s education system has long struggled with what critics say is a dangerous reliance on rote memorization and rigid testing. More and more Chinese people may be collecting degrees, the critics say, but they are not being trained in analytical and creative thinking. Education in China also routinely suffers from funding shortages, disparities between urban and rural regions, and limitations for children of migrant laborers."

Meanwhile, the Hurun Report’s other lists such as the Hurun Wealth Report 2011 provide a never-ending list of stats that perhaps no one will see as a surprise in this city of skyrocketing costs: Beijing is home to the largest number of millionaires in China, featuring 170,000 individuals with personal wealth of at least RMB 10 million, and 10,000 “super rich” individuals worth more than RMB 100 million.