The head of a national education institute is reported to have resigned under pressure after media reports that he broke rules on expenses for foreign travel and unfairly gained research funding for himself and his wife.

Yuan Zhenguo, president of the National Institute of Education Sciences, tendered his resignation to the Ministry of Education, according to a report in China Youth Daily on Tuesday.

The newspaper quoted anonymous sources who attended a staff meeting at the institute on Monday, where the ministry's leadership announced they had accepted Yuan's resignation.