In recent times, several universities in mainland China have successively announced that starting from 2026, they will extend the duration of certain professional master’s programs from two years to three years. This news quickly sparked a surge in online searches, with the total number of reads surpassing 100 million.
According to the recent information released, the extension of the professional master’s program in mainland China has become a trend:
Ningbo University’s announcement regarding changes in the enrollment of master’s students in 2026 shows that the duration of the law (jurisprudence) program has been extended from 2.5 years to 3 years (including full-time and part-time).
The announcement from the School of Sociology at Central China Normal University mentioned the plan to extend the duration of the full-time social work professional master’s program (035200) from 2 years to 3 years starting from 2026.
Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics’ notification regarding the release of the master’s program enrollment list for 2026 indicated that the duration of the graduate programs in Applied Statistics and Finance has been adjusted from 2 years to 3 years.
Starting from 2026, the Applied Statistics program at Minzu University of China (025200) will be adjusted from 2 years to 3 years; the International Chinese Education program (045300) and Finance program (025100) at Jilin Normal University will have their duration extended to 3 years; and the Translation Master’s program (0551) at Nanchang University will be adjusted from the current 2-year duration to 3 years.
Over the past two years, several universities have been extending the duration of graduate programs.
A report from “Orange Interactive” quoted a professor from a university in Zhejiang who mentioned that the duration of master’s programs, especially professional master’s, mostly ranged from 2 to 2.5 years, while the unified duration for academic-master programs is 3 years. Based on the situation in the past two years, it is estimated that the 3-year program will become mainstream.
Data shows that in 2024, there were 1.357 million enrollments in postgraduate education in China, with 4.095 million postgraduates in study and 1.084 million graduates. Compared to the postgraduate enrollment data in 2017 (806,100 people), there has been a 68.3% increase in postgraduate enrollments over the past 7 years.
The news of “Several Universities Extending Professional Master’s Program to 3 Years Starting from 2026” has gone viral, with the related topics reaching over 100 million reads.
Regarding the extension of the program duration, the official statement commonly mentions that a 2-year program is too rushed, hindering students from conducting in-depth research and practical experiences. Extending the duration by a year can provide more comprehensive learning and research time, contributing to improved training quality.
However, there is a plethora of discussions and comments online reflecting different opinions. Many netizens question what the true purpose behind extending the graduate program duration is and whether there are hidden motives:
Delaying employment pressure: Many netizens pointed out that the extension of the program duration is aimed at addressing the increasingly severe issue of employment challenges. Some comments suggest that postponing graduation by a year might simply defer the employment pressure to a later stage, causing it to erupt at a specific moment.
School interests consideration: There are also voices of skepticism suggesting that extending the program duration is a means for the universities to increase tuition fee income, possibly treating students as “free laborers” and extending their service time to the school. Moreover, extending the program duration will also put more pressure on the school’s resources such as the number of supervisors, laboratories, dormitories, etc.
Exacerbating the economic burden on students: Extending the program by a year implies that students will need to pay for an additional year of tuition fees, accommodation costs, and living expenses. For ordinary families already facing issues of “educational inflation” and employment pressure, this undoubtedly adds insult to injury. Some netizens straightforwardly express that “an extra year of tuition fees makes the barrier higher for families with poor economic conditions, affecting educational equity.”
Many netizens believe that this is not just a simple adjustment of the program duration; it touches upon several significant issues on multiple levels. With millions of postgraduates in China every year, the extension of the program duration directly affects a large number of students in terms of academic planning, economic burden, and career development.