38-Year-Old Peking University Admit Defends Gaokao Comeback
A 38-year-old Tsinghua University graduate who spent three years retaking China’s notoriously competitive college entrance exam has been admitted to Peking University Medical School, prompting a national debate about educational access and lifelong learning. Li Long, who first scored 695 on the Gaokao in 2008 at age 19, responded directly to critics who accused him of “taking opportunities from young people,” according to NetEase News.
A Dream Deferred by Poverty
Li Long’s journey began in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, where he grew up in a family near the poverty line. Despite his exceptional academic ability and a childhood dream of becoming a doctor, he chose mathematics and physics at Tsinghua University instead of medicine because his family could not afford the long training period required for medical education.
After graduating, Li Long built a successful career in the education and tutoring industry, helping numerous students gain admission to China’s elite universities. He became financially stable, purchasing three properties in Beijing, but the dream of studying medicine never faded.
Three Years of Retaking the Gaokao
In 2024, at age 35, Li Long announced he would retake the Gaokao to pursue his medical ambitions. His first attempt yielded 626 points—insufficient for his target schools. A second attempt in 2025 improved his score to over 640, but he still fell short. In 2026, his third consecutive attempt, he ranked within the top 300 candidates in Heilongjiang Province, securing admission to Peking University Medical School’s prestigious 8-year combined bachelor’s-doctoral program in clinical medicine.
QQ News reported that Li Long shared his admission results on social media with the caption: “38 years old, retaking the Gaokao, admitted to Peking University Medical School’s 8-year program. Done. Confetti.”
Responding to Criticism
Li Long faced significant online backlash throughout his journey, with critics arguing that a man in his late 30s was taking university seats from 18-year-old candidates and “consuming Gaokao traffic” for personal attention. In an in-depth interview with Jimu News, published via NetEase, he addressed the criticism directly.
“I did beat some young candidates, which means I obtained opportunities they couldn’t get. This has always been a knot in my heart,” Li Long acknowledged. “But if I put myself in their shoes—if in 2008 there was a 30-something-year-old candidate who scored higher than me, I wouldn’t think he took my opportunity. I would think I simply didn’t beat him. We all take the exam under the same rules, with no special treatment.”
He also reflected candidly on the three years of preparation, calling them “a waste of time—wasting three years to prove something I could already do.” What truly drove him, he said, was not the exam itself but “the obsession with studying medicine.”
Broader Implications for Lifelong Learning
The debate surrounding Li Long’s case reflects a growing trend in China of adult students returning to the Gaokao, raising questions about how limited seats at elite universities should be allocated. Yangcheng Evening News noted that his preparation strategy evolved significantly over three years, shifting from intensive last-minute cramming to a more measured approach involving regular practice exams and sustained preparation.
Medical education experts have also raised practical concerns. As Tencent News reported, Li Long will be approximately 46 years old upon completing his 8-year program, and many top hospitals in China maintain age limits around 35 for new doctoral hires—raising questions about his employment prospects after graduation.
What’s Next
Li Long has been clear that he does not encourage other adults to follow his path. “I don’t want people to treat my experience as a template,” he said. “Most people’s lives won’t fundamentally change just because they take the college entrance exam again.”
His decision was also shaped by changes in the tutoring industry, which he said made it difficult to continue developing in that field. He has expressed admiration for mathematician Wang Hong, who recently won the Fields Medal, saying he envies her ability to “deeply cultivate one field for decades, doing what she truly loves.”
As he prepares to begin his medical studies alongside classmates nearly two decades his junior, Li Long remains focused on his goal. “I haven’t had many truly fulfilling achievements in my first 37 years,” he told Jinan Times. “Retaking the Gaokao isn’t to prove myself, nor to make up for regrets, but to hope that in the second half of my life, I can do something meaningful in a field I truly love.”
His story has become a touchstone in China’s ongoing conversation about whether the Gaokao—and the opportunities it unlocks—should be available to anyone who can meet the standard, regardless of age. For Li Long, the answer is clear: “We all take the exam under the same rules.”