Examinees wait in long queues at the entrance to the Yuquanlu campus of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing to take part in China's national postgraduate admission examinations held from December 24 to 26. Photo: Li Hao/GT

About 4.74 million people have signed up to sit the 2023 national postgraduate admission exams scheduled from December 24 to 26 amid surging COVID-19 cases. The number has more than doubled compared with the figure six years ago, according to media reports on Saturday.

The Chinese Ministry of Education has called for the utmost efforts from local authorities to make ensure that the exam takes place as scheduled and that all candidates can safely participate. Local education authorities must coordinate with other government departments to effectively organize both anti-epidemic work and the exam itself, according to media reports.

A Global Times reporter visited the Yuquanlu campus of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing on Saturday morning and saw examinees wait in long queues at the entrance preparing to take part in the exam.

Examinees need to monitor their own health status and sign the statement of commitment on personal health five days before the examinations start, according to the requirements the Beijing education authority made.

Across the country examinees must wear masks at or above medical surgical level before entering the examination rooms. After entering the examination rooms, they must adhere to personal protection measures and are required to wear masks throughout the duration of the exams, the Chinese education ministry stated.

Special exam rooms have been set up this year for those who have a positive nucleic acid test result or abnormal body temperature, according to the ministry.

Examinees in South China's Guangdong who receive a negative nucleic acid test result on Saturday can report the negative results to supervisory staff at exam sites before being directed to their designated seat.

Examinees wait in long queues at the entrance to the Yuquanlu campus of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing to take part in China's national postgraduate admission examinations held from December 24 to 26. Photo: Li Hao/GT

A total of 2.01 million individuals sat for the 2017 national postgraduate admission exams. In the six years since then, the number of candidates has climbed to 2.73 million, representing a 2.36-fold increase, according to media reports.

Many provinces in China have witnessed an increase in the number of people registering for the exams this year compared with previous years.

In Southwest China's Sichuan Province, about 258,000 people are due to sit for this years' exams, 4,000 more than last year, media reported.

In South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, 90,000 candidates had registered, 13.9 percent higher than last year, according to media reports.

Meanwhile, in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, candidate number slipped by 2,170 from 125,071 to 127,241 this year, local media reported.

Global Times