By continuing you agree to eChinacities's Privacy Policy .
Sign up with Google
Sign up with Facebook
Q: Viability of vocational colleges as alternative to draconian gaokao?
I get the sense that vocational colleges are becoming more accepted and professional in China. And, as I understand it, entrance doesn't require a gaokao score.
Does anyone have any knowledge or experience of this?
I understand there are some Australian TAFE colleges in Chinese cities and I would presume acceptance to one of these would only require evidence of sound high school grades and English proficiency.
I could do some research of my own I suppose - and I might - but thought I'd throw this out to the wider community now.
I would like to be able to advise certain young people of an alternative to spending a year of programming and memorisation (otherwise known as year 12 in China), as long as it really is a viable alternative.
Thoughts welcomed.
8 years 22 weeks ago in Teaching & Learning - China
I managed a program within a third-tier college for almost seven years.
It's not so much an avoidance of the gaokao (as "international programs" are) but for those who failed the gaokao.
Many third-tier colleges offer "catch-up" courses that allow students to receive their high school diploma if they've even failed to receive that.
There are two certificates available from gov't high schools - the regular diploma (all prerequisite courses and conditions met) and the leaving certificate (validation of the bare minimum standards met).
PM me if you want to know more - too much to put in a single post.
I managed a program within a third-tier college for almost seven years.
It's not so much an avoidance of the gaokao (as "international programs" are) but for those who failed the gaokao.
Many third-tier colleges offer "catch-up" courses that allow students to receive their high school diploma if they've even failed to receive that.
There are two certificates available from gov't high schools - the regular diploma (all prerequisite courses and conditions met) and the leaving certificate (validation of the bare minimum standards met).
PM me if you want to know more - too much to put in a single post.
I recently met a girl who went through one of those, and studied English. Her English is MUCH better than many other people that I met here, including better than English majors! (the foreign boyfriend probably helped with that!)
She's now about to finish her degree at university.
She also seems somewhat more mature than others of her age..
so, it might be a good thing!
(however, as Sino hinted at above - you're probably going to get the lazy loser-types going there... although, I do acknowledge that the GK sucks, and so does Chinese high school (and all school here)... so it may not mean they're bad kids... but in my international programs, I haven't met many who were 'good' students!)
(also qualifying... I HAVE met some GREAT students in international programs!!! But, the stats are around 20% ... with about 30% losers and lazy and full of excuses... with the rest in the middle... just slowly plugging away at their own pace)
Interesting question. I guess depends on what you mean by viability.
My thoughts are:
Will it put them on the fast track to great success? No.
Will it put them on the same track (menial office droning) that most people who graduate even from "good shools" end up on anyway at a fraction of the effort? Yeah probably.
So I kinda think of it as a way for people to be realisitic. To look in the mirror and admit that given the reality of who I am and the what the job market is, "i'm probably not going to get an I-Banking or Consulting job even if I absolutely kill myself"
I think for a lot of locals even if they sacrifice everything else just trying to get in the best possible position to get an internationally competitive job it still leaves them with a 1% chance of actually getting a real future with CITIC or PwC or something.
So might as well just take the 0% chance and have a social life when the most likely outcome is doing data entry at a shared service center whether you bust your ass or not.
