Man to sit gaokao for 27th time to 'realize dream'

What does the National College Entrance Exam, or gaokao, mean to Chinese people? Everyone has their own answer. For Liang Shi, it's the only way to realize his dream of becoming a college student.

At the age of 56, the Sichuan native will sit the exam on Wednesday for the 27th time.

In 1983, Liang attended his first gaokao but failed. He tried again in the next two years but had no luck.

In 1986, his parents persuaded him to go to a technical school, but he quit after just one year, saying that he didn't want to work alongside loud machines.

He kept preparing for the test and did odd jobs.

In 1991, he went to work at a timber factory and got married. But he didn't give up on the gaokao. According to the regulation at that time, those aged 25 and older were not eligible to sit the regular gaokao, but could attend a special one for adults. That year the 24-year-old Liang made his "last" attempt at the exam — and again failed.

In 1992, Liang, sat for the adult version of the gaokao. He was admitted to an adult education school at Nanjing Forestry University, but he wasn't satisfied with it, so he didn't go.

In the same year, he was laid off. To support his family, he worked as a salesman. He sold clothing, refrigerators, TVs and hardware. Later he opened a building materials factory and earned a small fortune in less than a year from wholesale timber.

In 2001, the Ministry of Education canceled the age limit to sit the gaokao. Liang picked up his books again.

Buried in his business, he only had time to sit the exam in 2002 and 2006. From 2010 to 2022, he sat for the exam for 13 consecutive years.

His best score came in 2018 when he got 469 points out of 750.In 2019, he scored 462. But he didn't apply to any university because his goal was Sichuan University, which requires a student to score more than 600 points to get admitted.

His repeated tries have earned him a reputation and have been met with mixed responses. His son, who took the test in 2011 with him and has graduated with a master's degree, doesn't want him to be in the spotlight. His wife said nothing, so Liang took her silence as being supportive.

Some netizens say he is wasting time and energy and he is putting on an act. But Liang doesn't care about others' judgment. "Everyone pursues different things. You can't say who is right or who is wrong. As long as the law permits it, it's reasonable," he said.

To prepare for the exam this time around, Liang leaves home at 8 am, takes the subway to study at a friend's teahouse and returns home between 9 and 10 pm.

At 56, Liang said he finds it hard to get up early. He wants to realize his dream as soon as possible so he has decided not to fix his goal on Sichuan University this year. "I'll consider other universities," he said.