6 . Ten years ago, liberal arts majors were a hot proposition, but according to a recent report, engineering and science majors are more favored by Chinese university students nowadays.
The shift has happened since the country set its sights on growth powered by technological breakthroughs and high-end manufacturing.
The popularity of engineering has also been reflected in the annual adjustment of university majors by the Ministry of Education.
Since the ministry approved the establishment of AI-related undergraduate majors in 2018, 440 universities now offer them. When 180 universities set up AI majors in 2019, they became the top new majors of the year. Many engineering majors are associated with terms like “intelligent” and “smart”, with technological and scientific innovation in mind.
Financial and management majors were previously popular due to the capital’s role in driving social and economic progress. Rising geopolitical tensions have encouraged the turn toward engineering, as China has realized that technology will be the fundamental engine of future growth, and so engineering and science majors have become the most popular. More importantly, there are still many weak links and bottlenecks in China’s technological development, which require more talent to solve.
The development of AI in China still has a long way to go, so students are obliged to study properly and contribute to the sector’s rapid development.
A senior researcher said that students need to be more objective about popular majors as the demand for them might change based on societal demand and employment prospects. When choosing a major, they should focus more on their strengths and passions, he said, adding that if they pursue a popular major in which they are not interested, they will not learn professionally and will still find it hard to get a good job.
1. Why has engineering become popular recently?
| A．Liberal arts majors are less popular. |
| B．Chinese universities favor engineering majors. |
| C．China has have aimed at developing high-end manufacturing. |
| D．The Ministry of Education makes adjustments annually. |
2. How did the author explain the popularity of AI-related majors among the universities?
| A．By listing the numbers. | B．By making experiments. |
| C．By giving a description. | D．By making a discussion. |
3. Which is the most important factor to stimulate China to develop technology?
| A．The capital’s role in the progress. | B．Rising geopolitical tensions. |
| C．Many weak links and bottlenecks. | D．Societal rapid development. |
4. Which option may the senior researcher agree with?
| A．Engineering leads to good jobs. | B．Choosing a major depends on its popularity. |
| C．People must follow the crowd. | D．Interest is the best teacher. |
