The university admissions scandal in the U.S., which involved influential public figures bribing and cheating their children’s way into elite institutions, has been widely discussed in China. Caixin’s Chinese-language story about the scandal was one of our most-read articles.

The popularity isn’t hard to explain. China, home of Confucius, places foremost importance on education. But it has been struggling with corruption and lack of equal access to education for decades. A recent scandal involving celebrity Zhai Tianlin — who managed to get into prestigious schools but allegedly obtained fraudulent academic qualifications  re-sparked the debate here about privilege and higher education in China.

In the U.S., students normally apply to universities based on their scores on standardized tests, which, granted, they may take several times. But a number of other factors are included, such as extracurricular activities and awards.

Meanwhile, Chinese have their singularly important annual college entrance examination, also known as “Gaokao” — which in most cases solely decides a student’s fate, no matter what other supplementary activities they’ve done.

While China also has its admission bribery and privilege-related access problem, its situation is worsened as well-off parents pour money into exam training classes, including private tutors, to help their children ace the Gaokao. And as China’s wealth gap widens, the divide between who can and cannot afford this preparation is also widening.

Though China must address corruption in its admission system and provide more equitable access to Gaokao prep, one opinion writer, Qi Kezhan, stressed keeping the exam but introducing more flexible and diverse admission criteria.

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