"I didn't study hard at the undergraduate level. I took a few professional courses for postgraduate entrance examinations. I feel that only after a graduate student can real life begin," said a third-year student majoring in pharmacy in a university in Southwest China.

　　This year, there are 4.57 million applicants for postgraduates nationwide, an increase of 800,000 or 21% over 2021; compared with 2017, the number of applicants has increased by 2.56 million, an increase of 1.27 times.

The total number and increment of postgraduate registrations that are constantly being refreshed in the boiling are intertwined with the motivation to upgrade the quality, the pressure of "forced business" and the inability to escape from the society.

Employment turned into an anomaly?

Postgraduate entrance examination "enter the palace more" at all costs

　　"I have taught career planning courses for 10 years. This course is usually held in the freshman year. In the first class of each year, I ask students what their goals are for the next 4 years? About 5 years ago, about 50% of the class People say they want to take the postgraduate entrance examination. Now, 80% of the freshmen are willing to take the postgraduate entrance examination. Even in the fourth year, more than 70% of the students are preparing for the examination.” said Bian Yuxuan, deputy dean of the School of Geographical Sciences of Hebei Normal University.

　　At the same time, due to the epidemic situation, international situation and other reasons, studying abroad has been blocked, and some students have changed their studies abroad to domestic postgraduate entrance examinations.

Zeng Yi, a student at the Beijing Institute of Graphics, said that she had planned to study abroad and had been studying IELTS, but due to the new crown pneumonia epidemic, she switched to postgraduate examinations in domestic universities.

　　In addition to college students, Banyuetan reporters also found in an interview that many candidates chose "World War II" and "Three World Wars" after the failure of the postgraduate entrance examination. These young people either gathered in the postgraduate entrance examination boarding base, or a few people rented houses near the school to prepare for the test.

　　Li Shunping has just completed the "World War II" exam. He told reporter Banyuetan that there are about 1,500 candidates preparing for the postgraduate entrance examination in his postgraduate boarding base. "Zhan" candidate: "I know a person with the same major. He is 30 years old. This year's 'Fourth War', not Tsinghua University."

　　Hong Jian, a candidate for the "Three Wars" of Qingdao University of Technology, introduced that his undergraduate major is transportation engineering, and most of his work after graduation is to go to the construction site.

His postgraduate entrance examination is to change majors and careers, and now he is preparing to apply for the computer major.

"This year, the standards of colleges and universities have been lowered, as long as you can find a school to study for graduate school."

Postgraduate "undergraduate"?

Equipment upgrades or excuses to escape

　　When the reporter Banyuetan learned about the reasons for the postgraduate entrance examination, he found that some students love their majors and are dedicated to learning.

However, when most students talk about the purpose of postgraduate entrance examination, their main purpose is to increase their own application weight and alleviate the employment anxiety that pervades the society; The mentality of "I want to play for a few more years" and "fear of becoming a social animal" joined the postgraduate entrance examination army.

　　——Love what you have learned and study knowledge, and "change the track" to broaden your horizons.

　　During the interview with Banyuetan reporters, it was found that many engineering students love their majors, are willing to devote themselves to modern technology research, and are eager to know the frontier of knowledge.

At the same time, there are also some students who hope to increase the popularity of their graduate schools through postgraduate entrance examinations and engage in majors that they are interested in.

Meng Xiangyan from the School of Public Administration of Hebei University of Economics and Business said that some students did not consider their major choices when applying for the college entrance examination.

　　——Only adding weight to employment, graduate students are not the end.

　　During the interviews, many students complained that they were deeply troubled by employment anxiety and believed that they could not find their favorite jobs with a bachelor's degree.

　　Wang Xiao of Hebei Medical University said that postgraduate study in medicine is almost inevitable. If he wants to work in a large hospital, but he is unwilling to go to a grassroots hospital, he must take postgraduate entrance examinations and study for a Ph.D. Liu Yunyun, a fine arts teacher at Suzhou University of Science and Technology, said that he wants to be a teacher in the future. , A bachelor's degree is not competitive, and only graduate students can find a good job.

　　However, as the number of graduate students increases, so does the competitive pressure.

In this regard, some students expressed confusion, and some thought that they should continue to study for a doctorate.

　　——Follow the trend blindly with no goals, and feel at ease with the flow.

　　Wang Mingyan of Hebei University of Science and Technology told reporters Banyuetan that he didn't plan to take the postgraduate entrance examination at the beginning and felt that it was too hard.

But there are more and more people around me taking the postgraduate entrance examination, and I have gradually developed the idea of ​​taking the postgraduate entrance examination, and I am still hesitating.

　　"Until the beginning of 2021, I plan to get a job after graduation. Later, I saw other people's beautiful records of campus life and graduate life on social media, and I had the desire to continue my studies on campus." Cao Fang, a 2022 communication major student Hua said.

　　——Lazy to work, tired of taking responsibility, and hiding in the postgraduate safe house.

　　Some of the interviewed students admitted that they did not want to get a job in the postgraduate entrance examination, they did not want to enter the society, and they did not want to assume social and family responsibilities.

Wang Huiyan, a senior human resources manager in Beijing, said that some college students are "rigid" and "numb" when faced with employment pressure, and some even choose to "lie down".

　　Xiao Guo, a teacher of fine arts at Suzhou University of Science and Technology, told reporters Banyuetan that he wanted to enter the society later and was not ready to become a "social animal", so he could temporarily escape the pressure and anxiety of looking for a job for the postgraduate entrance examination.

"Graduate study is also to give myself some time to think about what to do in the future. The school environment is relatively quiet, so I can spend a little more time to plan, and I don't rush to work."

"The emphasis is on participation" has become unemployed,

"Repeated participation in war" deep resentment

　　"Some students didn't know where they would go after graduating from the undergraduate program. They didn't prepare for the exam seriously, and they didn't look for a job seriously, which wasted their senior year for a year. In the end, the graduate students didn't pass the exam, and they missed the two golden employment times of spring and autumn recruits. , become unemployed people." said a teacher at Hebei Normal University.

　　He Yangqi, deputy director of the Academic Affairs Office of Xingyi Normal University for Nationalities, said that avoiding employment pressure by taking postgraduate entrance examinations may transmit the pressure to the postgraduate level.

In addition, some students disrupted their undergraduate studies for postgraduate entrance exams.

Some students are busy with postgraduate entrance exams in their senior year, their graduation practice is very perfunctory, and their graduation thesis and design are not attentive, which will have a negative impact on their successful completion of their undergraduate studies.

　　The person in charge of some college employment centers said that excessively touting the postgraduate entrance examination will increase the anxiety caused by the irrational thirst for higher education in the society and exacerbate the distortion of the job market.

　　Zhou Zhengsong, deputy dean of the Graduate School of Jiangsu University, said that there is also a structural imbalance in the current postgraduate entrance examination.

Judging from the enrollment ratio, the enrollment ratio of majors or key areas in urgent need in the country is relatively low. We should increase macro-control guidance from the undergraduate enrollment plan, restrict enrollment plans for some popular majors that do not meet social needs, and reduce the number of undergraduates. The size of the cultivation.

　　Source: "Ban Yue Tan" Issue 2, 2022

　　Ban Yue Tan Reporter: Ren Liying