A middle school in Jiaozuo, Central China's Henan Province holds a grand ceremony to boost morale for senior high school students on June 6, 2024, ahead of the annual national college entrance examination, or gaokao. According to the Ministry of Education, a total of 13.42 million students have registered for this year's gaokao, an increase of 510,000 students from 2023. Photo: VCG

After weeks of anxious waiting, a record 13.42 million students who took the college entrance examinations, or gaokao, now face the crucial decision of choosing which university to attend and what major to study for the next four years.

Students, along with their anxious parents, strive to gather as much information as possible to maximize the use of their scores in college applications, believing that a carefully chosen major can pave the way for a longer and more lucrative career.

This has led to the booming major consulting business and the rise of Zhang Xuefeng, an advisor and popular livestreamer in this field. Zhang sparked controversy with bold claims such as "liberal arts majors are ultimately about service [to please party A]," for which he later apologized.

Two days before gaokao of 2024, Zhang put counseling service packages on sale in his livestreaming for 11,999 ($1,651) and 17,999 yuan, which were sold out in seconds even though the service may not be provided by Zhang himself. Zhang's service for 2026 gaokao were also sold out.

The following day, "Zhang Xuefeng earns 200 million yuan by selling consulting packages on live broadcast for three hours" trended on major social media platforms.

For families who cannot afford tens of thousands of yuan, they are willing to pay hundreds to thousands for the service.

Although high schools and local education authorities offer basic guidance and lectures on major selection and the online college application process, and such information is readily available online, "parents of every one of my child's classmates still bought extra paid services," Wang Lei, a parent from Luoyang, Central China's Henan Province, where the gaokao is extremely competitive, told the Global Times.

In June 2023, AiMedia Consulting Agency released the "2023 China College Entrance Examination Major and Employment Prospects Big Data Analysis Report," which shows that 88.1 percent of the surveyed gaokao takers are willing to pay for the consultation service.

The market was worth 160 million yuan in 2016, jumped to 950 million yuan in 2023 and is expected to cross 1 billion yuan as soon as this year, per industry estimates.

Zhang and his consulting company serve around 3,000 students annually, with 60 percent of them not yet high school graduates.

"The belief is that the earlier you start planning, the greater your chance of entering an ideal school with the ideal major," said a parent from Handan, in North China's Hebei Province.

Such spending is no longer seen as "extra" but a necessary education investment just like those spent for exercise books and tutoring sessions, the Global Times learned.

Behind the booming market is parental anxiety about their children's career and future when a university diploma remains the stepping-stone to a good job, Wang said, when students focus more on courses, parents also feel compelled to "do something to help."

Divergence in regions

However, a teacher from a quality high school in Beijing surnamed Yang told the Global Times that only a few of his students and their parents paid for consulting packages.

The students typically have high scores, enabling them to choose from the best majors at a few prestigious universities. Their parents, often "new Beijingers" who settled in the capital city after graduating around the 2000s, have ample channels to acquire the necessary information regarding majors and jobs, according to Yang.

They can browse useful websites, go directly to universities or directly ask industry insiders. But for majority of the 13.42 million gaokao families, they have very limited knowledge on what different majors are about and what kind of jobs they will lead to.

The gaokao reforms, which allow students in some provinces to fill in up to 96 preferences in all rankings of universities, further increased the difficulty of the task, Wang said.

Several parents and Yang, acknowledging Zhang Xuefeng is too bold as a public figure in many of his remarks, recognized his role of providing a guide for "small-town test takers" and more students who scored lower.

Better-off families in first-tier cities can afford the costs of an idealist studying some unpragmatic major, while the audience of Zhang are first of all thinking of "survival" - how the major can lead to a satisfying income and quality life, Wang said.

Closing the info gap

Wang bought a book by Zhang for 50 yuan, which was a quick gateway for parents and students to have a general idea on different rankings of universities and disciplines. Based on such books parents may shop for more expensive, tailored consulting services.

There are other efforts to close the information gap. In addition to diverse free instructions provided by high schools and city or provincial education organs, the Ministry of Education launched a free information service system on the Sunshine Gaokao platform to assist students navigating the application process.

It aims to provide a reliable and comprehensive resource for millions of students as they choose their future paths.

The system integrates extensive data on university admissions, majors and employment prospects. It also offers career assessment tools developed with the help of psychology experts, which can help students gain valuable insights into their professional preferences and aptitudes. The system also personalizes university recommendations based on admission data and individual gaokao scores.

Incorporating authentic information, the system is seen by observers as helpful for students and families to maximize their chances of admission and optimize their major selection, as the vast, booming market of university application consultancy may also attract unprofessional institutions, misguiding students in making this crucial decision.

Also increasing universities are enrolling students to "disciplines" rather than niche "majors" so that students have the chance to switch between different directions based on their interest and talent.

Admittedly, while the gaokao and college applications remain crucial, it is no longer the era where one gaokao determines everything. Whether through commercial services or government efforts, the ultimate goal is to bridge the information gap and enable all young people to make informed choices suitable for their individual circumstances, observers said.