Institutional Exclusion and Credential Recognition: A Qualitative Study on the Labor Market Experiences of Vocational Education Graduates

Wang Ziyun1, Li Zhe2*

doi:10.64649/yh.eg.2026010009

Institutional Exclusion and Credential Recognition: A Qualitative Study on the Labor Market Experiences of Vocational Education Graduates

期刊: 《Educational Guide》 DOI:10.64649/yh.eg.2026010009 全文阅读返回期刊

Wang Ziyun1, Li Zhe2*

1. Hainan Vocational University of Science and Technology；2. City University of Macau

摘要

Based on the realistic context of China’s labor market, this study systematically investigates the employment dilemma faced by vocational education graduates with qualitative research methods, and deeply analyzes the interaction between institutional exclusion and qualification certification mechanism. It is found that the employment barriers derived from the household registration system, the structural mismatch between specialty setting and market demand, and the policy threshold of academic standard orientation all constitute the institutional obstacles that restrict employment. At the same time, the lack of social recognition of vocational qualifications is obvious, and the existing evaluation system often falls into the path dependence of “emphasizing diplomas and neglecting skills”, which leads to the value of skills being obscured by diploma symbols. Based on this, this paper advocates the transformation from distributive justice to recognition of justice, and puts forward some policy suggestions for building a multi-dimensional support system: deepening the system reform, improving the national qualification framework, promoting the integration of production and education and reshaping social cognition, in order to substantially improve the labor market situation of vocational education graduates.

关键词

Institutional Exclusion, Credential Recognition, Vocational Education Graduates, Labor Market, Recognition Justice

参考文献

[1] Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China. 2022. White Paper on the Development of Vocational Education in China (press release, Aug 2022).

[2] General Offices of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council. 2021. Guidelines on Promoting the High-Quality Development of Modern Vocational Education (Oct 2021).

[3] Fraser, Nancy, and Axel Honneth. 2003. Redistribution or Recognition? A Political-Philosophical Exchange. London/New York: Verso.

[4] Honneth, Axel. 1996. The Struggle for Recognition: The Moral Grammar of Social Conflicts. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

[5] Bourdieu, Pierre, and Jean-Claude Passeron. 1977. Reproduction in Education, Society and Culture. London: Sage.

[6] Collins, Randall. 1979. The Credential Society: An Historical Sociology of Education and Stratification. New York: Academic Press.

[7] Becker, Gary S. 1957. The Economics of Discrimination. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

[8] Fan, C. Cindy. 2002. “The Elite, the Natives, and the Outsiders: Migration and Labor Market Segmentation in Urban China.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 92(1): 103–124.

[9] Fan, C. Cindy, Peter V. Hall, and Geoffrey Wall. 2009. “Migration, Hukou Status, and Labor-Market Segmentation: The Case of High-Tech Development in Dalian.” Environment and Planning A 41(7): 1647–1666.

[10] Braun, Virginia, and Victoria Clarke. 2006. “Using Thematic Analysis in Psychology.” Qualitative Research in Psychology 3(2): 77–101.

[11] Strauss, Anselm, and Juliet Corbin. 1998. Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

[12] Patton, Michael Quinn. 2002. Qualitative Research and Evaluation Methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

[13] Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China. 2019. Statistical Report on China’s Vocational Education in 2018.

[14] U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC). 2023. China Educating and Training Its Next Generation Workforce (Annual Report chapter/section).

[15] Bourdieu, Pierre. 1991. Language and Symbolic Power. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

[16] Dai, Li, and Pedro S. Martins. 2024. “Does Vocational Education Pay Off in China? Evidence from City-Level Education Supply Shocks.” Economic Modelling 140: 106863.

[17] Tian, Y. 2022. “The Development of Vocational Education in China.” In Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research (Atlantis Press).

[18] Jing, T. 2022. “Vocational Education in China: Its History, Roles, and Challenges.” Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development 8(1).