KUALA LUMPUR - The proportion of mainland Chinese students using China’s national college entrance examination, or gaokao, for direct entry into Australian undergraduate programmes rose from 61.7 per cent in 2023 to 73.7 per cent in 2025.
According to a recent study report released by EIC Education, the gaokao has become the mainstream pathway for undergraduate admission into Australian universities, as reported by China Daily.
Seven universities under Australia’s prestigious Group of Eight — excluding University of Melbourne — now accept gaokao scores for direct undergraduate entry.
The report stated that students may also enter Australian universities through foundation programmes or first-year diploma pathways.
General business remained the most popular undergraduate major among applicants, accounting for 19.57 per cent of applications, followed by computer science at 8.91 per cent.
The report noted that many Australian degree programmes allow students to combine a major with one or two minors, helping to develop cross-disciplinary skills.
Annual tuition fees for undergraduate programmes at Group of Eight universities range from 200,000 yuan to 290,000 yuan.
Other Australian universities charge between 160,000 yuan and 250,000 yuan annually.
Business and engineering programmes generally cost more than humanities courses.
More than 72 per cent of mainland Chinese students applying to Australia are also considering changing academic fields.
Better job prospects were cited as the main reason by 85.7 per cent of respondents.
Other reasons included pursuing personal interests and choosing less academically demanding courses.
The report added that many Australian master’s programmes in business, humanities and certain information technology fields accept applicants without related academic backgrounds, making cross-disciplinary study increasingly common.
Australia has set its 2026 international student enrolment quota at 295,000, an increase of 25,000 places from 2025.
Nearly 200,000 of the available places are allocated to higher education programmes.
Mainland Chinese students remain the largest group of international students in Australia.
Data from the Australian Department of Education showed that 195,535 mainland Chinese students were enrolled between January and December 2025, accounting for 23.1 per cent of all international students in the country.
The figure marked a 3.4 per cent year-on-year increase.
Higher education programmes made up 74 per cent of Chinese enrolments, rising 6.3 per cent from 2024.
Meanwhile, Australian National University has lowered the minimum average score requirement for graduates from non-“211” Chinese universities applying to most coursework master’s programmes from 85 to 80.
Among students applying to Australia, 62.5 per cent also applied to the United Kingdom, while 14.8 per cent submitted applications to New Zealand.
The report attributed this to similarities in education systems, academic structures and English-language learning environments.
It also highlighted the appeal of Australian universities due to their clear admission requirements, stable policies and relatively straightforward application processes.
The report further noted that IELTS One Skill Retake is now widely accepted, allowing students to retake only the language component they failed to meet.
Students were advised to focus on fields with strong labour demand in Australia, including healthcare, education, engineering and social work.
The report also urged applicants to prepare visa applications demonstrating genuine study intentions and clear career plans under Australia’s stricter visa assessment policies.