Forever Living Like It's College Entrance Exam Year
Why Chinese can't stop competing even after moving abroad: "Neijuan" runs deep
We are Stella and Amy. We share firsthand stories and perspectives that are either lost in translation or simply inaccessible to you. Together, we bridge cultural divides and bring the world a little closer—one post at a time.
The Conversation
CJ worked in the advertising industry in China before moving to the United States. He is now working and pursuing his PhD degree in Engineering Education in Arizona.
CJ: When I first started working in the states, my boss told me I could ramp up by watching training videos and leave at 3 PM, which lasted for 1-2 months before returning to regular 5 PM hours. This period was one of the rare times in my life where I could quietly reflect on my future plans.
There's a joke about Chinese people "living their entire life like they're in the final year before the college entrance exam in high school." I felt like I finally stopped that pattern and could calmly think about what I really wanted to do.
Stella: CJ touches on an experience that many people who've worked in both East Asia and America shared. In East Asian work environments, you're often in a reactive and anxious state, feeling like you must constantly do something to prove your value and existence.
However, just because one spends more time working doesn't necessarily mean he/she made a bigger impact or became better. There isn't always a direct cause-and-effect relationship there.
The Cocoon
What does CJ mean when he said, "Chinese people live their entire lives like they're in their senior year of high school"? The final year of high school in China is notoriously intense, with students studying exhaustively for the national college entrance exam. CJ uses this metaphor to describe how many Chinese people maintain this same frantic, high-pressure mindset throughout their life.
This perpetual state of intense competition has given rise to the popular term “nei juan” (内卷) or simply "juan" (卷) among Chinese communities. The term "nei juan" (内卷) is originated from the English word "involution". While "involution" in its original academic context refers to a system's self-perpetuating stagnation or development that leads to diminishing returns, in China, "juan" has taken on a broader and more vivid meaning. It describes the exhausting and often futile competition in various aspects of life, such as education and work, where individuals are pressured to overexert themselves without corresponding rewards. You can use it quite flexibly as an adjective or verb to describe the exhausting rat race where everyone feels compelled to outwork and outperform others, even when the rewards don't justify the effort.
Making the Cut to Attend High School
The controversial "middle school vocational assignment policy" (中职分流硬性规定) requires students to choose between academic and vocational tracks after completing middle school, effectively determining their future prospects at the young age of 15. Under this policy, 1 out of 2 (50%) middle school students will be assigned to vocational tracks if they fail to meet academic performance standards.
This has created unprecedented anxiety among parents, who fear their children might be locked out of all future opportunities. Despite government incentives like tuition waivers and national scholarships, employment prospects for vocational school graduates remain disappointing. 85% of vocational school students eventually seek further education rather than entering the workforce directly - suggesting that immediate employment after vocational training may not offer the career opportunities that parents hope for their children.
Only Riches Can Escape the System
Faced with this intense pressure, families with means are increasingly seeking escape routes. Some opt for international schools within China, while others choose an even more dramatic solution: sending their children abroad at a young age. “Early-age overseas students" (低龄留学生) now accounts for approximately 20% of all Chinese international students. These parents see it as a way to avoid the crushing pressure of the Chinese education system - though this option is only available to those who can afford it.
Among the wealthiest families, Western countries such as the UK, US, and Canada remain the most popular destinations, valued for their globally recognized education systems. For families with more modest means, Southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines offer a more affordable alternative, with international schools that provide pathways to prestigious universities in Western countries.
You can change the environment, but you can’t change your mindset
The "juan" (卷) mindset is deeply rooted in the zero-sum nature of the college entrance exam system, where only the highest scorers can secure spots at top universities. Success meant "taking it all," while failure meant watching the winners “taking it all”.
But even after leaving school or moving abroad, many Chinese people find it takes years for them to shake off the "juan" mindset. Whether working at foreign companies or living overseas, there's often a compulsion to maintain the same intense competitive drive: working longer hours, pursuing higher salaries, buying bigger houses - always staying one step ahead in life's endless race, otherwise, they feel they are losing.
This phenomenon has become so ingrained that it's spawned countless memes and jokes in Chinese social media. One popular post reads: "You can take a Chinese person out of gaokao (college entrance exam), but you can't take the gaokao mindset out of a Chinese person."
Many people who grow up in this culture recognize the need to stop engaging in meaningless competitions, however, they often can’t help it.
Perhaps the first step to breaking free from this cycle is recognizing that life isn't always a zero-sum game. As CJ discovered at his new job in the states, sometimes slowing down and taking time to think can be more valuable than constantly rushing forward.
You don’t always have to win. You don’t always need to react to what the world seems to demand of you. You can just… be.
Please subscribe The Cocoons for more exclusive conversation snippets and stories.
We are Stella and Amy. We share firsthand stories and perspectives that are either lost in translation or simply inaccessible to you.
I deeply resonate with this. Being an above-average student from primary school through middle, high school, college, and even graduate school, I’ve spent years treating everything as a score or milestone. While it may leave you with a collection of titles, it also drains your energy. Break the cycle—you deserve self-driven aspirations and a more natural sense of appreciation.