Students line up before entering the hall to sit the postgraduate entrance exams. (Photo: Yang Hui/GT)
Some 1.77 million students throughout China sat the last national entrance exams in December, 2015 - a record number of candidates. The previous highest number was in 2012 when 1.76 million signed on for the grueling tests for Chinese students.
So on March 10, when the minimum eligibility scores for the tests are announced, 1.77 million people in China will be able to know their future. For them it is a time of real stress, especially since only 30 percent will be admitted.
Education insiders say one of the big reasons that more students are taking the exam is that there is much fiercer competition for jobs now. A simple bachelor's degree is, for many, not enough to win a high paying position with prospects. Eol.cn, China's largest education-related Web portal, has recently published the results of a survey of 37,885 entrance exam candidates.
The survey found that more than half were intending to take a master's degree because they believed it would help their future employment prospect. Of the students seeking a master's degree 43 percent wanted more skill so they could earn a higher salary after they graduated, while 13 percent took the exam because they wanted to delay entering the job market.
Pressure intensified
Huang Shao'an is a professor at the Center for Economic Research at Shandong University and told the Dazhong Daily that the number of bachelor degree graduates had been climbing in the past few years, but at the same time China's economy was sliding, so the pressure to find good jobs had been intensified. "Students choosing a master's degree are hoping to set themselves up for better opportunities in the job market. I think this is the driving force behind the rising numbers."
Chen Xuying is one of those who sat the December exam with the intention of delaying the moment when she would have to apply for a job. The 22-year-old came from Zhejiang Province four years ago to study in the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology. But majoring in communications at a university that specializes in science and technology didn't give the young woman enough confidence to plunge into the job market immediately.
"I like this major, but I think I've only scratched the surface of the subject in my studies. I've taken several communications courses in my undergraduate studies but none of them were really serious," she said. She has now applied to complete a master's degree in news communications at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, which has been listed as one of China's top universities in the 985 Project.
The 985 Project, and the 211 Project are university ranking lists and are considered key assessment for students and parents in China. There are more than 2,850 universities and colleges on the Chinese mainland, but only 112 of them are listed in the 211 Project, and just 39 of the 112 are listed in the 985 Project. Chen's original university was not listed in either and she is hoping that attending a more prestigious university will enhance her career prospects - even if her course is not one of the university's key subjects.
"My plan to get a master's degree is also for my future," Chen said. "I want to stay in Shanghai and a master's degree will help me get a Shanghai hukou (residency permit)."
She is not the only one planning to upgrade her degree in order to get a Shanghai hukou. The city promises new graduates Shanghai hukou if they can achieve set academic levels and meet other requirements. But even graduates from Shanghai Jiao Tong University would struggle to get a hukou with just a bachelor's degree - a master's degree is much more acceptable.
However Chen faces another hurdle now. She has just learned that her mark for one of the exams was too low and she might not be accepted by Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Her parents have suggested she sit the civil service exam but Chen doesn't want to be a civil servant and suffer "a monotonous life" - even if the job is very secure and respectable.
"Why can't I try as much as I can when I'm still young? I'm confident and ready to accept if I make mistakes." Chen told the Global Times that she would ideally like to work in the media or in public relations or advertising.
