Tests for skilled workers

A reform plan unveiled recently by the Vice-Minister of Education Lu Xin will divide the national college entrance examination into academic and vocational paths, with the former designated for academically inclined candidates and the latter for technically inclined ones.

A college-educated workforce is important, but it is not the only pillar of a national economy, said a commentary in Changjiang Daily on Monday.

In fact, many robust economies have a workforce with a comparatively small share of college degree holders. In Germany, for instance, that figure is 26 percent, and more than 58 percent of students choose to pursue vocational or technical education after they graduate from secondary school.