Over 133 lakh students take China's Gaokao, 10x more than India's biggest exams
China came to a halt this Saturday as 13.35 million (133.5 lakh) students sat for the Gaokao 2025 – the national college entrance exam that can make or break careers. Held across thousands of centres, this year's number was slightly lower than 2024, when 13.42 million students took the test.Known for being one of the toughest university entrance exams in the world, Gaokao decides who gets into China's top colleges. The pressure? Immense. Outside each centre, crowds of anxious parents waited with snacks, drinks, and even flowers, hoping to cheer their kids on.What's interesting is that the number of students that appear for this exam in China is much higher than the number that appeared for the last CBSE Class 12 board exams (16.92 lakhs) or the last JEE Mains (12.58 lakhs) session. The number of participants is more than 10 times than those appearing for the biggest exams in India!SECURITY, AI CAMERAS AND FREE RIDES FOR STUDENTSGaokao day in China is no ordinary day. Cities brought in temporary traffic rules to keep roads around exam halls clear. Many students even got free transport help to reach their centres on time.Inside, some centres used AI-powered cameras to catch anything unusual -- an extra step to avoid cheating and maintain fairness. Police used drones and other high-tech tools to watch over the process.Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang visited a school in Taiyuan and called for extra safety and fairness during the exam.GAOKAO STILL SEEN AS A DOOR TO A BETTER FUTUREEver since it was brought back in 1977, Gaokao has helped millions move ahead in life. As per Xinhua, 'Gaokao, the unified exam, has transformed millions of lives through merit-based selection.'According to China's education ministry, over 47 million students were enrolled in colleges and universities by 2023. While the gross enrolment rate in higher education has crossed 60%, fresh graduates face tough job prospects due to a slowing economy -- about 12 million students enter the workforce every year.(With PTI inputs)
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