The reproduction of regional inequality through university access: the Gaokao in China

This paper examines a specific form of regional inequality: the provision of and access to university education in China. It argues that given the very hierarchical structure of universities in China, with a small number of top universities, not only is the distribution of top level universities very regionally unequal but also, given the importance of the university entrance examination (Gaokao) in controlling entrance to university, the role of provincial student quotas and the fierce competition for places at top universities, the result is a system that advantages applicants from the big eastern cities and provinces and disadvantages students from poorer, inland provinces. This helps to reproduce regional inequality in China.