2.9 million Chinese take exams for postgraduate recruiting in 2019

BEIJING — A total of 2.9 million Chinese students took the 2019 entrance exam for postgraduate studies over Dec 22-24, the highest number in 40 years, according to a report.

There were 520,000 more applicants in 2018 compared to 2017, up 21.8 percent. Nearly half of those who took the exam in 2018 have already finished their undergraduate studies, while the other half is expected to graduate this year, says the report released by eol.cn, the website of China Education Online.

After a 12-year suspension, the country resumed the entrance exam for postgraduate studies in 1978, admitting 10,708 students. In 2017, enrollment exceeded 806,000, 74 times more than in 1978, the report says, adding that the number continues to rise with part-time postgraduate study programs incorporated in the national entrance exam system since 2017.

Some top universities have expanded postgraduate enrollment since China initiated a project in 2017 that aims to elevate 42 of the country’s higher education institutions to world-class levels.

Some 28 of the 42 universities expanded their enrollment for programs in 2018, it says, citing Fudan University in Shanghai as a place that will recruit 700 more postgraduate students in 2019.

Being a competitive candidate for the job market is a top motivation for many people who want to pursue postgraduate studies, the report says.

“People say we further our studies because we don’t want to work. In fact, we just want a more ideal job,” says Lu Ying, a postgraduate computer science student at a Hebei university, who has taken the exam twice.