This year's graduate school enrollment has been delayed by more than half a month compared to previous years. The delay is said to be due to the approval of many master's programs, which also indicates the addition of many new majors. The scale of graduate student enrollment is larger than in previous years, and the Ministry of Education postponed it to count the planned quotas.

This seems like a good thing. Since the enrollment scale has increased, can it solve the issue of competition in the graduate entrance exam? Will many people find it easier to get into graduate school? In fact, this is just an illusion.

Firstly, we can see that the cost of taking the graduate entrance exam and the cost of attending graduate school are changing every year, with credit hours increasing annually, and tuition fees rising much faster than wages.

For example, three years ago, in 2021, the tuition fees for graduate students were relatively low. However, from 2022 to 2023, these two years have seen a peak in tuition fees, possibly related to the pandemic.

For instance, in my field of study, whether it is agricultural management or rural development, the tuition has increased by 7,000 to over 10,000 compared to 2021. At the same time, there is also a phenomenon where the score lines for admission have changed and shown an upward trend. Although some majors have low national score lines, if a school has a good source of students, there will be an institutional score line, which is usually higher than the national score line. Not only is the total score higher than the national score line, but the individual subject score lines are also higher.

This means that the score lines seem to be rising every year. The reason for the increase in score lines is that too many people are applying to this school and this major, which objectively raises the score lines. Since the planned number of enrollments is limited, the score lines for those entering the re-examination are also relatively high.

At the same time, tuition fees have also increased because schools no longer lack student sources; they can fill their quotas regardless of the situation. In this case, schools have gained the initiative in setting tuition fees. For example, have tuition fees for graduate students increased in 2025? Most schools have raised their fees, with smaller institutions possibly increasing by two to five thousand, while larger institutions may raise fees by five thousand to tens of thousands.

Some say that schools raise graduate tuition fees because of increased teaching costs, but this is just one factor. In my view, the main reason is that they can meet their student enrollment needs well. Secondly, they have gained the initiative in pricing. Furthermore, the overall economic push in society has led to inflation, which has also caused an increase in costs. In this situation, tuition fees must be raised unless the government issues price limits. For example, the tuition for full-time academic master's programs has remained stable, thanks to national policies.

So, with rising score lines and tuition fees, will the quality of education be better than before? This is not necessarily the case. Once a corresponding educational mechanism, model, and resources are established, a fixed training model is formed, and the increase in costs for this fixed model is minimal. For instance, students who paid 10,000 a year a few years ago and those who now pay 30,000 a year are receiving almost the same training model, and the quality of training is nearly equivalent.

It is foreseeable that in the future, score lines will become even more competitive, unless the major is an unpopular one that no one wants to apply for. Some extreme situations do exist, but they are not common; what we are discussing is the general phenomenon.

As tuition fees continue to rise and score lines keep increasing, who will ultimately be able to afford this education? Those without financial means, who cannot pay tuition, will have their chances of attending school called into question. Therefore, it can be predicted that many years from now, graduate education will essentially become elite education, as only the elite will have the material conditions to attend.

For example, in domestic universities, the MBA programs at the least known schools have tuition fees starting at several tens of thousands, while well-known universities charge tuition fees in the hundreds of thousands, even exceeding a million. When tuition reaches over 300,000, will an ordinary worker attend? Even if they are talented, it is unlikely. This means that MBA programs may only select those who have the financial means.

Of course, the tuition for graduate students, particularly for part-time graduate programs, also depends on the reputation of the school, the strength or weakness of the program, and the conditions of student enrollment at the time, among other factors. However, one unavoidable trend is that tuition is periodically increasing, and it is generally higher than that of full-time programs.

For part-time and full-time graduate students, the same exam conditions, the same enrollment model, the same re-examination model, and even the same training model and graduation requirements pose higher demands on working individuals. This is because working students need to achieve the same level as full-time graduate students within limited time, which requires part-time students to consolidate their knowledge through self-study during their spare time.

Of course, relative to the large population base, graduate students are still a scarce resource in society. Expanding graduate education may be more beneficial for improving the overall quality of the educational system.

However, in graduate education, the strength of the school, the degree of specialization, and the resources invested in education are very important. Only if these aspects are strong can they better educate people. At the same time, from the perspective of the graduate students themselves, whether they truly dedicate themselves to learning, understanding, and strictly demanding themselves while making the most of every possible moment also presents a challenge.

For the current Chinese economy, universal knowledge may not have a significant impact. The only correct path for the entire society to achieve miraculous development through education is innovation. Therefore, even though graduate education is considered high-level education, it must still strongly advocate for innovation.

From the school's perspective, there is a need to update and iterate knowledge, as some teachers are still using textbooks from 2009 or even the early 2000s, which is clearly out of touch with the times. Such knowledge cannot be said to be useless, but it is certainly disconnected from reality. Therefore, for schools, keeping up with the times in teaching, knowledge, skills, strategic awareness, and tactical abilities is crucial.

At the same time, for graduate students, if the educational resources they face are relatively outdated, it places higher demands on them to actively seek out various channels to learn and improve themselves. Only in this way can they truly live up to their potential and maintain a spirit of innovation and motivation.

Thus, it can be seen that whether it is the competition in score lines or the rising costs, these are all surface phenomena. What truly determines the future of graduate students is still their genuine skills and abilities. Therefore, for graduate students to advance further, it is essential not only to make full use of the educational resources provided by the school but also to engage in diligent study and effort in their spare time.