Zhou Yuan, a humanities education major set to graduate in 2026 from Guangxi Normal University, has recently shifted his job search focus. Faced with increasingly fierce competition for public school teaching positions, he has abandoned his pursuit of the "iron rice bowl" and is now submitting applications to private middle schools. Among his peers, some have entered industries like insurance, sales, and cultural creation, while others have chosen to prepare full-time for the next round of teacher recruitment exams, hoping to secure a stable position. The rising pressure on employment is a common feeling among many education majors in recent years, a situation closely linked to demographic shifts in the school-age population.
Over the past two years, teacher recruitment plans have begun to contract in many regions. For example, Hubei Province plans to publicly recruit 2,740 primary and secondary school teachers for 2026, a decrease of approximately 52.8% from the 5,799 positions in 2025. Concurrently, many normal universities are adjusting their program structures: on one hand, reducing enrollment in some traditional teacher education programs; on the other, adding new engineering disciplines such as artificial intelligence, new energy materials and devices, and intelligent manufacturing engineering.
Shifting Demand Beyond Simple Contraction
For 2026, several regions including Henan, Guangxi, and Hunan have continued to reduce enrollment in government-funded teacher education programs. This year, Henan Province plans to admit 1,117 students for its local government-funded teacher program and "Excellent Teacher Program," a 51.3% decrease from 2025, and will no longer enroll students in the preschool education associate degree program. Lin Yan, who has long been involved in training for preschool teacher recruitment exams, has observed a change: "In the past, most trainees were associate degree holders in preschool education, but in recent years, bachelor's degree holders have become increasingly common." The educational level of teacher trainees is rising.
An analysis reveals that government-funded teacher education programs at six ministry-affiliated normal universities have all implemented integrated bachelor's and master's degree training. Xun Yuan, Vice President for Academic Affairs at Northwest Normal University, noted that the current focus in building the basic education teacher workforce is on quality improvement. The proportion of primary and secondary school teachers in China holding postgraduate degrees remains relatively low, suggesting a need to appropriately expand the scale of postgraduate-level teacher training.
Changing demand is a direct influencing factor. The public recruitment plan for primary and secondary school teachers in Jiangxi Province has dropped from 7,821 positions in 2023 to 1,190 for 2026. Chen Ning, a sophomore majoring in mathematics education at a provincial normal university in Jiangxi, began preparing to apply for postgraduate studies in computer science or automation after learning about the significant contraction in recruitment plans. "Switching from education to engineering is about broadening my career path," he said.
However, the demand for teachers is not simply shrinking; it is also influenced by educational stage, subject, and region. He Min works at a public junior high school in Dongguan, Guangdong. Over the past five years, the number of students and classes at her school has continued to grow, with the largest class having over 50 students. The school has added about 120 new teachers, with contract-based teachers accounting for roughly 30%, serving as an important source of staffing.
Zhu Lei, head of the Career Development Department at East China Normal University's Student Career Development Center, stated that while undergraduate enrollment in preschool education at the university has decreased in recent years, the overall enrollment scale for education majors has not significantly contracted. Some regions are still supplementing their teaching staff in anticipation of a peak in high school student numbers. Increasingly, graduates from normal universities are expanding their job searches to include county-level areas and non-provincial capital cities.
Two years ago, Zhao Fang graduated from Qufu Normal University and became a high school history teacher. She noted that for many government-funded teacher education graduates like herself, the biggest concern is not "whether they can find a job," but "where they can work." Competition for preferred postings is intense, with only those ranking at the top in exams getting priority to choose schools in more desirable locations.
Lu Xiaozhong, a professor at the School of Education Science at South China Normal University, believes that the teacher surplus under the current student-teacher ratio standards could also create conditions for reducing class sizes and promoting small-class teaching. "If we factor in the demands for high-quality educational development, the so-called 'teacher surplus' is not as severe as people imagine," he stated.
Pivoting Towards Engineering Disciplines
In response to demographic changes and industrial transformation, many normal universities are adjusting enrollment in their education programs while simultaneously establishing new engineering disciplines. For instance, on June 22 of this year, Hefei Normal University inaugurated new schools including the School of Artificial Intelligence, the School of Integrated Circuits, and the School of Low-Altitude Technology and Engineering.
Admissions structures are also tilting towards science and engineering. A staff member from the admissions office of Henan Normal University explained that this year, some education programs like history have seen reduced enrollment targets, while four science and engineering programs at the university's Perpignan International Institute of Technology, such as Information and Computing Science, have each added 60 enrollment spots.
In recent years, a provincial normal university in Anhui established a new engineering college. "Judging from internal student transfers, more students are currently transferring into the new engineering programs than out of them, possibly related to the relatively broader employment prospects for such majors," said Wu Fei, a teacher at the university.
Liang Tingfu, a college entrance planning expert, noted that in recent years, the number of students taking science and engineering tracks in college entrance exams has been continuously increasing. If normal universities rigidly adhere to traditional education programs, they risk losing many high-quality science-track students. Adding new engineering disciplines can adapt to current student preferences and broaden the applicant pool.
Xun Yuan analyzed that adding non-education programs is not a new phenomenon; since the 1990s, normal universities have been transforming towards comprehensive universities. This current wave of establishing engineering disciplines is both a response to contemporary technological progress and changes in production methods, and a continuation of the past path of comprehensive transformation.
However, whether the new engineering programs at normal universities can gain social recognition remains a question. Liu Yang, a 2026 graduate from a ministry-affiliated normal university, found that despite the university developing many engineering programs, recruitment units and positions at campus job fairs are still concentrated in education-related fields. "Enterprises still hold some stereotypes about normal universities," he said.
Liang Tingfu has received many inquiries in recent years about the new engineering programs at normal universities. He once encountered a science-track student from Shaanxi who hesitated between two choices: newly established AI and robotics engineering programs at a key normal university, and traditional engineering programs like mechanical design and electrical engineering at a well-established polytechnic university. The student ultimately chose the latter. "Parents often ask: Is it reliable for a normal university to run engineering programs?" Liang Tingfu said. "The 'teacher education' label of normal universities affects how applicants and parents judge their engineering programs."
Avoiding "Old Wine in New Bottles"
In this round of program adjustments, normal universities face the dual challenge of "developing quality new engineering programs" and "maintaining their core education mission." The strengths of normal universities typically lie in teacher education and foundational arts and sciences, while engineering is relatively weak. Establishing new engineering programs involves higher costs, requiring more adequate faculty, funding, equipment, and industry resources.
The new engineering colleges at normal universities are mostly formed by adjusting and reorganizing existing departments. Wang Sheng, a lecturer at Anqing Normal University, recently transferred from his original department to the newly established School of Intelligent Manufacturing and Robotics. "We originally belonged to a comprehensive science and engineering college, which later split into several more specialized new schools," he explained. The school he transferred to is still in its initial stages, integrating existing science and engineering faculty while also recruiting many new teachers.
Faculty resources are simultaneously being tilted towards the new engineering programs. On February 7 of this year, Anhui Normal University established three new engineering schools: the School of Intelligent Information and Advanced Manufacturing, the School of Intelligent Materials and Future Energy, and the School of Artificial Intelligence. The university's recent 2026 talent recruitment announcement shows that these three new engineering schools plan to hire a total of 33 people, accounting for over a quarter of the university's total recruitment plan.
Establishing new secondary schools often requires rebuilding management and teaching systems. "Developing course plans, laboratory management systems, etc., is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and laboratory construction also requires significant investment," said Wu Fei. When contacting a provincial normal university's School of Artificial Intelligence established in 2025, a program director briefly mentioned insufficient funding for program development before politely declining further interview requests.
Wu Fei previously worked at a 211 Project polytechnic university and recently joined a new engineering college at a provincial normal university. Compared to his previous experience, he clearly feels that normal universities are somewhat lacking in engineering practice. Lu Xiaozhong believes that the establishment of new programs at normal universities should be based on the real industrial needs of the local area and implemented in training plans and practical teaching. After adjustments to original programs, some teachers may transfer to teach in new programs, but their knowledge structure and teaching abilities also need to be updated simultaneously to avoid putting "old wine in new bottles."
In October 2024, Northwest Normal University integrated its internal engineering resources to establish a School of Engineering. Xun Yuan stated that Gansu is undertaking strategic emerging industries like integrated circuits, and the university hopes that through program adjustments, it can better serve national strategies and local industry talent needs. "Currently, the biggest challenge is establishing closer cooperative relationships between universities and enterprises," Xun Yuan said, adding that Northwest Normal University is sending young faculty to enterprises as "technology vice presidents." While participating in enterprise R&D, teachers can also understand real industry conditions, thereby breaking down barriers between the laboratory and the factory floor.
Wang Sheng explained that the new engineering programs at his university are closely linked to the local automotive industry. The university organizes students from relevant programs to intern at local automotive companies and sends new faculty and doctoral students to visit and understand the actual needs of local industries.
Preserving the "Teacher Education Core"
As normal universities intensively add new engineering programs, concerns about "de-emphasizing teacher education" have emerged. Since September 2025, a discussion on "Revisiting the Primary Responsibility of Normal Universities" was initiated, with some scholars pointing out that as comprehensive universities actively engage in teacher training, and given that current university evaluation and resource allocation systems prioritize research output and comprehensive strength, local normal universities face the risk of their "teacher education core" fading.
"This involves a fundamental judgment: the state's requirement for the 'primary responsibility' of normal universities remains teacher education," Xun Yuan stated. There is also a view that new engineering development and teacher training are not two separate paths. One interviewee recalled a leader at a provincial normal university stating in an internal speech: "Developing science and engineering is necessary to preserve the teacher education core." Normal universities need to develop science and engineering disciplines to compete for more resources, enhance their educational level, and maintain their comprehensive rankings and competitiveness.
Lu Xiaozhong analyzed that the development of new engineering programs at normal universities can, in turn, benefit teacher education. New engineering departments can support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) education, which emphasizes interdisciplinary training, by sharing courses, faculty, and resources.
The rapid development of new engineering is also changing the direction of teacher training. In 2025, Guangxi Normal University successively established a School of Artificial Intelligence and an "AI + Education" Development Research Center, exploring areas like AI+ curriculum development, AI+ teaching innovation, and AI+ intelligent teaching aids.
The information technology curriculum at He Min's junior high school previously focused on teaching basic computer operations. Now, the curriculum includes programming, robotics, and artificial intelligence, and the teachers also need corresponding training. Zhu Lei mentioned that beyond their major courses, East China Normal University offers a "second classroom" to provide education majors with vocational skills training, helping them apply AI tools in classroom teaching and class management.
"The reason for concerns about AI replacing teachers is that many teachers still focus primarily on knowledge transmission, and the nurturing role of teachers has not been fully realized," Xun Yuan believes. AI improves the efficiency of knowledge acquisition and presentation, so teachers should focus more on the individual growth of students: "How to guide students in cooperation, communication, gradually understanding themselves, cultivating their imagination and understanding of society—these are all issues teachers need to consider."
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