Failing to get into regular high school doesn’t mean your path ends: secondary vocational schools offer linked admission programs and separate exams, and employers can lower educational requirements for skilled roles.

5. Failing to get into regular high school doesn’t mean your path ends: secondary vocational schools offer linked admission programs and separate exams, and employers can lower educational requirements for skilled roles.

Cost: No cost at all. Before submitting your high school entrance exam applications, check your province’s official vocational education admissions platform once.

In plain terms: The Vocational Education Law enacted in 2022 explicitly states that vocational education holds equal status to general education. Secondary vocational schools can enroll students through linked admission programs with higher vocational institutions, which in turn must reserve a set proportion of their enrollment slots or hold separate exams specifically for secondary vocational graduates. Employers are also prohibited from setting eligibility barriers based on a candidate’s vocational school background. Failing to meet the cutoff for regular high school admission simply means you get to choose a different path — it does not leave you stuck with a junior high school diploma.

Benefit: Article 3 of the Vocational Education Law (effective 1 May 2022) stipulates: “Vocational education is an educational type that holds equal importance to general education.” Article 37 states that secondary vocational schools “may, in accordance with relevant national regulations, implement linked admission and training programs with higher vocational education for designated majors.” Higher vocational institutions “may, in accordance with relevant national regulations, admit students via assessment methods that combine academic ability and vocational skills.” Provincial-level and above education authorities are required to build unified vocational education admissions platforms to publish information on schools, majors and enrollment quotas, and provide application query services. Article 53 further specifies: “Students from vocational schools enjoy equal opportunities as students from regular schools at the same level in terms of further education, employment and career development.” Higher vocational institutions and regular universities offering vocational education “must reserve a corresponding proportion of their enrollment quotas or hold separate exams to admit vocational school graduates specifically.” It is also forbidden for employers to set application, hiring or employment criteria that prevent vocational school graduates from competing on an equal footing. For positions requiring specific vocational skill certifications in public institution recruitment, “educational requirements can be appropriately lowered” nationwide.

Evidence grade: A

Sources: Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (2022). Vocational Education Law (revised in 2022, Articles 3, 37, and 53). <http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_sjzl/sjzl_zcfg/zcfg_jyfl/202204/t20220421_620064.html> (Published by Ministry of Education of China)

Notes: These benefits apply to both yourself and your children. All the channels outlined here are legally mandated, but they do not guarantee admission. The specific majors covered by linked training programs, the exact proportion of slots reserved for separate admissions, and the exact subjects tested in vocational college entrance exams are all determined by each individual province. Before submitting applications, you must check your province’s current vocational education admissions platform and enrollment quotas — do not rely on rules or practices from other provinces. When selecting a secondary vocational major, use the criteria outlined in Section 10 of this chapter (choosing skills that are less prone to automation) as a reference: majors that require on-site work in non-standard environments are less likely to be phased out. To pick a school, confirm it is listed in your province’s current vocational education enrollment plan. Verify any certificates issued by the school using the three-step process described in Section 8 (checking whether a certificate is on the official approved list). Avoid any recruitment materials that make promises like “guaranteed job placement” or “100% admission success” at all costs.