In recent years, the English major that used to be popular in Chinese universities has now been downgraded to a “yellow card major”, with more and more colleges and universities abolishing it. Analysis shows that against the backdrop of the economic downturn, policies such as the “double reduction” policy implemented by the authorities, the reduction of English teaching hours in primary and secondary schools, and the impact of AI are the main reasons why English majors are no longer as sought after.
Recently, an article published by “SHUDAN”, a WeChat public account under Beijing GuLi Culture Media, pointed out that over the past two years, many colleges and universities in Hunan, Fujian, Henan, and Hubei have been revoking English majors. Wang Yun, a university teacher of English at an independent college in Hebei, has expressed her frustration multiple times as her school’s English major, which used to enroll as many as 10 classes per year, has now dropped to only six classes since last year. Unlike public schools, independent colleges follow the market trends closely, and the school administration clearly feels that the demand for English majors has declined.
The decline in the status of English majors is not only perceived by university English teachers but also evident on social platforms like Xiaohongshu, where posts about layoffs of elementary and middle school English teachers and English major graduates struggling to find employment abound. Jokes like “Before graduation, even a dog won’t do a job with a monthly salary of 3000; after graduation, when even dogs are not working, I have to work” have become the harsh reality for English major students.
The article points out that the wave of abolishing English majors is closely related to the overall environment. In 2021, the introduction of the “double reduction” policy (reducing in-school assignments and off-campus tutoring pressures) led to the closure of many off-campus training institutions. According to data from the Chinese Ministry of Education, as of September 2022, there has been a reduction of 95.6% in in-person extracurricular training institutions and 87.1% in online institutions. English training institutions have been hit the hardest, with millions of English teachers facing unemployment.
Furthermore, the launch of the 2022 “Compulsory Education English Curriculum Standards” further reduced the proportion of English class hours in public primary and secondary schools, with English class hours accounting for only 6%-8%, ranking third from the bottom among all subjects. Historically, English teachers have been the primary employment destination for English major students; however, the declining status of English majors directly impacts the prospects of this profession.
Interestingly, the downsizing and layoffs in English training institutions, alongside the reduction of English teaching hours in elementary and middle schools, sharply contrast with the rapid expansion of enrollment in universities. According to data from the Chinese Ministry of Education, there are 994 undergraduate institutions nationwide offering English majors, producing over 100,000 graduates annually, resulting in a significant oversupply. In better economic times, companies could overlook professional restrictions in recruitment, but with the current economic downturn, hiring trends are leaning towards vertical technical talents.
Wang Yun mentioned that if English major students do not excel in English and lack proficiency in other fields, it becomes their weakness. With the advancement of AI and translation software, some English major students’ writing skills may not even match those of AI, posing the question of what role they can play in the job market.
Data from 2024 indicates that 12% of entry-level translation positions have been replaced by AI, resulting in a professional crisis for numerous practitioners.
Fan Bowen, an English teacher at a junior high school in Handan City, is also pessimistic about the future of the English major. He believes that being an English teacher is one of the most competitive professions among all subjects. Jobs such as business, translation work, especially the lucrative field of simultaneous interpretation, are gradually being taken over by AI, and even written translation work is significantly impacted. Therefore, despite studying English for many years, finding a job remains extremely challenging.
Fan Bowen couldn’t help but lament, “Over a decade ago, English was a brilliant major, but now the situation is completely different.”