The Times recently ran a Room for Debate feature on the Chinese expansion of higher education. What I regard as the most interesting entry comes from Zheng Yongnian of the National University of Singapore. He argues that China’s great leap forward into higher education was largely a bureaucratic bungle that has led to a wasted talent. More and more students have been lured into universities, but that has led to the atrophying of tech schools and in turn a shortage of skilled workers and technicians.
I recall reading, a year or two ago, that many young Chinese who have college degrees find themselves working in factory jobs anyway. Another writer mentions that.
Seems as though China’s higher-ed infatuation has a lot in common with ours.