A Study on the Stratification of Educational Continuation and Early Occupational Attainments Among the Chinese Undergraduates' in China: The Sample of Shanghai.

In Chinese society under economic reform, higher education has had an enormous impact on social mobility. As the demand for higher education continues to increase, in particular after China officially implemented the reform plan for the "expansion of the university enrollment" in 1999, the scale of higher education has grown rapidly. However, the reform plan has brought about two problems: educational inequality and low employment for some college graduates. Does the latter problem result from social stratum? More specifically, do students from lower income families suffer from a vicious cycle of inequity in both the educational and employment market? This paper looks at the effect of college undergraduates' social class, professional background and performance on their future development after graduation. Adopting the methodology of logistic regression, this study analyzes data 1, 040 samples from eight high schools in Shanghai, China collected by the author from May to June 2004. In brief, the study reaches the following conclusions: (1) The factor of social class significantly affects not only a student's college attainment but also his/her future development, such as advanced studies, overseas studies, or employment. In other words, a higher income family offers greater possibilities to an under graduate to access better education or jobs. (2) The factor of school ranking has less relevance while individual performance has a greater effect in determining future development. Inequity hinders social mobility. An undergraduate with a lower class background needs to make more efforts to receive a superior education at an elite school. As the new educational reform is implemented, it will lead to less social mobility for those from lower social strata. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]