The typical characteristics and macro causes of gender structure change in China's higher education
Description
The evolution of gender structure in higher education stands as a central research topic globally. China, with its extensive educational history and the largest education system, displays highly representative patterns and considerable research significance in this area.Enhancing empirical analysis of China's higher education gender structure change not only facilitates the construction of localized gender education theories but also provides crucial insights for global education equity practices. However, systematic examinations of the evolutionary trends, driving forces, and underlying mechanisms of China's higher education gender structure remain inadequate.This study employs panel data from 31 Chinese provinces (2003-2022), focusing on macro-level multidimensional influencing factors of higher education gender structure changes. Temporal patterns and interprovincial differences were analyzed to constructing an interaction framework around economic development, social culture, educational transformation, family decisions, and labor market dynamics, via dimensionality reduction of 15 factors. After 15 years of rapid growth, female enrollment peaked in 2018, then stabilized at 52% with a declining growth rate. The Spatial differentiation pattern has emerged as the first breakthrough in the north and West, the gradient follow-up in the South and coastal areas, and the overall lag in the central and western regions. Key drivers include Per capita GDP, proportion of female students and female faculty in senior secondary schools, indicating significant positive impacts from economic foundations, educational continuity, and gendered faculty distribution. These fundings enhances theoretical insights and offers empirical guidance for optimizing gender balance in higher education, providing replicable strategies for developing countries undergoing demographic and educational transitions.