The Choice And Differentiation Of Postgraduate Entrance Examination Under The Background Of Higher Education Stratification

In recent years,the phenomenon of the craze for postgraduate entrance examination has continued to heat up,and the number of postgraduate entrance examinations has continued to rise.According to statistics from the Ministry of Education,the number of applicants for postgraduate entrance examinations in 2021 will reach 4.57 million,an increase of 127.36% from 2.01 million in 2017.Behind the rapid increase in the number of applicants for postgraduate entrance examinations is the expectation of individuals to obtain better educational returns by pursuing higher levels of academic achievements in order to achieve upward mobility in a relatively stereotyped social class.However,due to the internal hierarchical structure formed in the historical development of higher education in Chinese,undergraduates at different levels of colleges and universities face great differences in the process and results of postgraduate entrance examinations,and ultimately lead to differences in individual academic achievements.Therefore,this paper aims to explore the impact of higher education stratification in Chinese higher education field on individual academic achievement through the comparison of undergraduate entrance examinations at different levels of colleges and universities.The author attempts to analyze the above problems by answering the following three questions:（1）Why does the individual take the postgraduate entrance examination? What role does the hierarchical structure of higher education play in the selection of individual postgraduate entrance examinations?（2）Are there differences in the postgraduate entrance examination results of undergraduates at different levels?Is this difference consistent with the stratified structure of my country’s higher education?（3）If there are significant differences,what role does the tiered structure of higher education play?The study found that Chinese current higher education stratification as an important mechanism has promoted the emergence and development of the phenomenon of the craze for postgraduate entrance examination.The stratification of higher education affects the individual’s choice of postgraduate entrance examination by affecting the social reputation,resource allocation and employment quality of colleges and universities at different levels,and motivates individuals to seek higher-quality academic achievements.In order to further illustrate the differences in academic achievement of undergraduates in different levels of colleges and universities,the author establishes a differentiation model for postgraduate entrance examination under the background of stratification of higher education by comparing the results of postgraduate entrance examinations for undergraduates in key and non-key universities.The model shows that the postgraduate entrance examination results of different levels of colleges and universities show structural differences that are in line with the hierarchical structure of higher education.This study believes that this is because in the field of higher education in my country,there are large differences in the "postgraduate entrance examination capital" owned by students at different levels of colleges and universities.Students with high school levels have more institutionalized and objective resources than students with low school levels.The combined effect of these capitals helps them achieve higher academic achievement.Therefore,this paper believes that field of higher education in Chinese where undergraduates at different levels have completed the reproduction of academic achievements with the help of the practice of postgraduate entrance examination.