Major reforms rolled out ahead of gaokao

Universities expand enrollment, add AI, tech programs to align with shifts

China's national college entrance exam, known as the gaokao, will take place from Saturday to Tuesday and feature several new developments, including the rollout of exam reforms in eight additional provinces, expanded university enrollment and the launch of new academic majors.

This year, eight more provincial-level regions will implement the gaokao reform: Sichuan, Henan, Shanxi, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Qinghai and the Ningxia Hui and Inner Mongolia autonomous regions. So far, 29 provinces have adopted the new gaokao mechanism.

Under the reform, candidates must take three nationally standardized subjects — Chinese, mathematics and a foreign language — along with one primary elective subject, either physics or history, and two additional electives selected from chemistry, geography, political science and biology.