China: Parents and students line up to compete for vocational school spots

In the early morning of an early summer day, a large number of parents lined up in front of the gate of Changping Vocational School in Beijing to get their children an admission. Some people even came the day before, waiting all night.

"If I study industrial robotics, my child will be sought after by businesses and promised a job right before graduation," a parent of a 15-year-old child shared in China Daily.

By early afternoon, the school had to issue a notice to stop enrollment because it had filled the quota, many days earlier than planned.

This phenomenon is not just happening in Beijing. High schools and vocational colleges, especially in industrial production centers such as Shandong or Guangdong provinces, have seen a surge in applications, far exceeding the number of available seats.

This change comes from labor market realities. Every year, China's higher education system produces a record number of graduates, making many positions in the fields of technology, finance or administration fiercely competitive. Many young people with bachelor's degrees find themselves unemployed or working below their capacity.

Meanwhile, with the orientation of promoting high-end manufacturing, robotics and artificial intelligence, the Chinese labor market has a serious shortage of skilled technicians. Demand for master's degree holders decreased from 20% in 2024 to 17% in 2025, while demand for graduates of vocational programs increased from 8.5% to 11%.

In fact, vocational school graduates have higher job offer rates than all other groups in 2024, according to Sixth Tone.

Mr. Wang Heye, founder of vocational education consultancy Liangyou Education in Beijing, assesses that social awareness of skills education is changing. In the past, vocational training was often considered a "reluctant choice" for children with poor learning ability. But now, more and more families see this as a realistic and promising path to career success.

This turning point is driven by the boom of new industries, expanding job prospects, opportunities for higher education and strong support from the government.

In the master plan for education development for the period 2026-2030, China places building a modern vocational education system as a top priority. The country aims to establish about 60 high-quality vocational colleges and 160 key training clusters, associated with key industrial supply chains. The plan also mentions the goal of building 100 school-business alliances and 20 national-level affiliated communities for each industry. The Government is committed to supporting the establishment of more practice centers and upgrading training equipment.

According to the Chinese Ministry of Education, the country currently has nearly 8,400 vocational education institutions, including about 6,700 vocational secondary schools, 1,500 vocational colleges and 90 practical universities (vocational universities). The total number of students studying at these establishments is 29.37 million.