"The answer for more students choosing vocational colleges is becoming increasingly clear — it's future job certainty," said Tang Daisheng, a professor at the School of Economics and Management at Beijing Jiaotong University.

　　For many years, the value of undergraduate degrees has been diluted by the expansion of university enrollment. Many graduates from ordinary undergraduate programs face employment difficulties upon graduation, he said.

　　"High-quality vocational colleges, especially those with targeted training programs, offer students the guarantee of employment upon graduation — a certainty that is invaluable for ordinary families.

　　"The talent gap for skilled workers is real," Tang added. In fields like advanced manufacturing, new energy and smart manufacturing, the supply-demand ratio for senior technicians has long exceeded 1:3, he said. "Vocational graduates are not settling for second best — they are choosing a more practical path."

　　Xia Xinsheng, deputy director of the admissions and employment office at Beijing Polytechnic University, said the school's recent enrollment data reflects growing student interest in vocational education.

　　The university, which upgraded to a vocational undergraduate institution in 2025, expanded its Beijing admissions from 490 students across five majors in 2025 to 1,590 students across 13 majors in 2026 — a 225 percent increase.

　　Despite this significant expansion, all majors recorded minimum admission scores above Beijing's undergraduate cutoff of 429 points — ranging from 443 to 452 points, he said.

　　The school also saw its top score rise to 554 points, up from 549 the previous year, indicating that high-scoring students are increasingly drawn to vocational undergraduate programs.

　　In the eight other provinces the university has enrolled students from, all enrollment scores had increased.