An advanced degree in China? Think again, students say, as exam numbers plunge
China’s graduate entrance examination is not seen as the golden ticket to employment that it once was
Enrolment for China’s postgraduate entrance exam has declined for the second consecutive year after a years-long rise, signalling waning interest in advanced degrees that appear to be losing value at a time when job opportunities for young Chinese adults are scarce.
Data revealed by the Ministry of Education on Thursday showed that 3.88 million people have signed up for the 2025 postgraduate entrance exam. This marks an 11.4 per cent drop from this year’s total of 4.38 million, and an 18.1 per cent drop from the 2023 total of 4.74 million.
“Now, with a gloomy job market, a master’s degree no longer guarantees job opportunities, so some college graduates choose to start working immediately if they can find a job after graduation,” said Xiong Bingqi, director of the 21st Century Education Research Institute, a Beijing-based think tank.
China’s annual national graduate entrance examination, known as the kaoyan, used to be considered a life-changing opportunity, with millions of students relying on it to earn a prestigious diploma and, ideally, to secure better job prospects after graduation.
Only 44.4 per cent of postgraduates looking to earn their degrees this year had received job offers as of April, slightly lower than the 45.4 per cent among those with a bachelor’s degree, according to findings from a survey conducted by Zhilian Zhaopin, one of the biggest job-hunting platforms in China.
Results of the College Students Employability Survey, published by the Information Centre of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, also showed that the job-offer situation was more dire for this year’s graduates with master’s and doctoral degrees from general universities – those not ranked among the nation’s top institutions.
Only 33.2 per cent had received offers as of April, a 17-percentage-point decrease from last year, and also lower than the 43.9 per cent offer rate among those who earned only undergraduate degrees from general universities.
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate for China’s 25-29 age group – which includes most recent earners of advanced degrees – increased to 6.9 per cent in August from 6.5 per cent in July, the month most of those graduates left school.