College Major Choice / Career ExplorationCollege Major
Choosing a College Major After the Gaokao: How to Use RIASEC, MBTI, and Career Interest Tests
Before submitting Gaokao applications, use RIASEC, MBTI, and real-world exploration as inputs—not verdicts—when comparing majors. This guide explains what these tools can and cannot tell you.
Quick Answer: How Should Tests Be Used When Choosing a Major for Gaokao Applications?
First check current official subject, enrollment, batch and admissions conditions, along with practical costs. Use scores, rank and previous admission data to compare uncertain application options; they do not establish that you will be admitted.
Use RIASEC to identify which learning tasks, work activities, and occupational environments resonate most with you—rather than letting the test dictate your major choice.
Use MBTI-style descriptions to ask questions about communication, decisions and collaboration. Check study experiences through real coursework; a preference result does not identify a best learning method or choose a major.
Map test results onto major course content, curriculum structure, lab/experiential requirements, future job responsibilities, and real-world tasks—not onto a specific major name.
Finally, validate through course syllabi, interviews with upperclassmen, open lectures, small projects, internship observations, or industry insights: are you genuinely willing to commit long-term to this major?
One-sentence summary:Gaokao college application major selection is not "take a test and then fill out the application" but rather first narrowing down options using scores and rules, then formulating hypotheses based on career interests and personality preferences, and finally refining those hypotheses through real course work and actual tasks.
Who is this article for?
This article is suitable for three types of readers:
Students: who already have a general sense of their scores or rank, but are overwhelmed by dozens of major names and unsure how to prioritize them.
Parents: concerned that the student might only follow popular majors, peer recommendations, MBTI personality types, or employment and salary rankings when making decisions.
Individuals who haven't received their scores yet but want to prepare in advance: who wish to take career interest tests, MBTI assessments, or other major selection tools, but don’t want to be misled by the idea that "tests determine your major."
This article does not tell you which school or major to apply to. Instead, it performs a different task: it breaks down the process of choosing a major into a clear, checkable, discussable, and verifiable workflow.
Ask the Right Question: You Are Not Just Asking "What Major Fits Me?"
When choosing a major for Gaokao applications, families often compress several different questions into “What major suits me?” No single test can answer that. Separate the decision into these questions:
The question you really want to ask
What to look for first
What testing can help
What testing cannot replace
Do I meet formal application conditions?
Current official subject, batch, enrollment, physical-exam, language and single-subject rules
Tests do not establish eligibility
Current provincial and university rules
How should I compare uncertain application options?
Scores, rank, historical admission data and changes in the current plan
Tests do not estimate admission probabilities
An application strategy that records uncertainty and keeps historical references separate from formal conditions
Is this major worth studying?
Major courses, curriculum plans, graduation requirements, school resources
Help you determine which courses and tasks are more worthy of in-depth understanding
Official major catalog, the institution's official curriculum, real course information
Would I be interested in it?
Course content, experiments/projects, future work activities
RIASEC can help observe work activities and preferred work environments
What study and collaboration experiences should I investigate?
Actual teaching, assignments, teamwork and expression requirements
MBTI-style descriptions can prompt questions to test in real tasks
Evidence of comprehension, performance, costs and admission outcomes
Is this direction realistically feasible?
City, tuition fees, family constraints, rules for changing majors, employment information
Help you ask questions to be verified
Family decisions, provincial policies, real changes in the job market
Which options meet the current official application conditions, and how should rank references inform a separate, uncertain application strategy?
Which core courses and training methods can I realistically sustain?
Which kinds of learning tasks and future work activities am I willing to explore?
What constraints involving tuition, city, program length, and family circumstances matter?
Which assumptions can I test through course materials, open classes, interviews, or a small project?
Which options should be retained, verified further, or temporarily excluded?
Tests can help generate questions at the interest and preference layers. They cannot override official eligibility rules or provide an admissions decision.
Why Not Choose a Major Based Only on Popularity, Parental Advice, or MBTI?
Each source of advice can contribute information, but none should decide the major by itself.
Popularity should be translated into evidence about curriculum and real tasks. Parents’ concerns should be written as constraints to verify. Test results should become questions—not labels.
Separate formal eligibility, application strategy and study preparation
Check current official application and admission conditions first. Keep historical rank references in a separate application-strategy assessment. Curriculum, academic preparation, teaching resources and practical costs need their own checks; they do not become formal eligibility conditions unless the applicable official rules explicitly make them so.
It's recommended to gather information from these 8 categories:
Scores and Rank: The meaning of a score varies across years; ranks generally provide a more useful reference point than raw scores when establishing a range.
Batch cutoffs and admission rules: Admission criteria differ by province, batch, and program group—rules cannot be directly transferred from other provinces.
Subject requirements: Especially in new Gaokao regions, it’s essential to confirm specific subject prerequisites—for example, physics, chemistry, or biology—required for certain program groups or majors.
Enrollment plans: Review the number of available spots within your own province—not just the prestige of the university.
Admission regulations: Pay attention to restrictions such as individual subject scores, language proficiency, physical examination, additional exams, and major reassignment policies.
Major course requirements: Examine core courses taken during the first three years—not just the name of the major.
Training methods: Assess the proportion of experimental work, internships, thesis writing, projects, competitions, and practical classes.
School resources and transfer mechanisms: Evaluate faculty and institutional support, postgraduate recommendation and major-transfer rules, cross-disciplinary opportunities, and local industrial ecosystem.
At this stage, the value of career interest assessments and MBTI is not to "screen" universities for you—it's instead to help you ask more specific questions: Which types of coursework should I prioritize? What kinds of learning tasks am I most likely to engage with? Which majors sound appealing but have curricula I might resist in practice?
RIASEC Career Interest Assessment
RIASEC is most useful after clearly ineligible options have been removed. It helps you ask which learning and work activities deserve closer investigation.
RIASEC signal
Possible tips when choosing a major
What should be checked
What conclusions should not be drawn directly
Realistic (R) is relatively high
May be more interested in specific systems, equipment, engineering, operations, and practical tasks
Proportion of experimental classes, practical training, engineering projects, and on-site practice
"I can only study engineering"
Investigative (I) is relatively high
May be willing to analyze problems, do research, and understand system causes
Mathematics/statistics/experiment/scientific research training intensity
"I must be suitable for scientific research"
Artistic (A) is relatively high
May value expression, creation, open questions and design space
Portfolio, design classes, presentation-based projects, creative training
"I can only study art majors"
Social (S) is relatively high
May care more about education, help, communication and feedback
Internship settings, work serving people, teaching/consulting/organizing activities
"All humanities and social sciences are suitable for me"
Enterprising (E) is relatively high
May be more sensitive to influence, organization, business, resource coordination and result feedback
Business projects, management courses, competitions, organizational practice
"I must study business"
Conventional (C) is relatively high
May like structure, order, data, processes and reliable execution
Use the strongest and weakest activity preferences to select majors for further course and task verification. Do not map a RIASEC code directly to one “correct” major.
What Can MBTI Offer When Choosing a Major?
MBTI-style language may help you compare learning and decision preferences:
MBTI Observation Points
How it helps in choosing a major
Risks
Safer ways to ask
Information processing preferences
Ask which presentations feel more natural, then compare actual understanding and costs in tasks
Treat S/N as intelligence level
Is the core course of this major mainly concepts, experiments, cases, or projects?
Decision-making preferences
Understand the way you deal with value conflicts, logical judgments and interpersonal influences
Treat T/F as a ranking of rationality versus emotion
Is this major curriculum more focused on rule-based reasoning, policy judgment, or communication with people?
Collaboration preference
Observe your own energy consumption in group assignments, presentations, and internships
Treat E/I as social skills
How much presentation, communication, and teamwork is required for this major?
Life organization preferences
Ask how open tasks and deadlines feel in practice; check adaptation and performance separately
Use J/P as a self-discipline/procrastination label
Are the assignments and projects in this major spread across the term or concentrated in short bursts?
Do you prefer to think privately before discussion, or develop ideas through interaction?
Are you drawn first to concrete cases and details, or to concepts and possibilities?
Do you prioritize consistent criteria, or begin with people and values affected by a decision?
Do you work better with early structure, or with room to revise as information changes?
A safer approach is to turn each preference into two competing study strategies and test both. For example, compare reading the conceptual overview before examples with studying worked examples before the overview. The result can inform learning experiments, but it cannot determine eligibility, capability, or major outcomes.
Should you consider the Big Five personality?
The Big Five is not the main focus of this article, but it can serve as a third-level reference. It is better suited for observing long-term behavioral tendencies, such as Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Emotional Stability. For more on the OCEAN five dimensions, see What is the Big Five personality test?.
In Gaokao college application decisions, the Big Five is more useful for asking:
What kind of rhythm support do I need when facing long-term tasks?
How sensitive am I to uncertainty and stress?
Do I require frequent social feedback, or am I better suited to independent, deep work?
To what extent am I open to new fields, new courses, and interdisciplinary exploration?
The Big Five cannot determine a major, predict personal career success or identify the most effective support system by itself. Use descriptions to ask questions, then check possible support through actual coursework, feedback and costs.
The Roles of RIASEC, MBTI, and the Big Five in Major Selection
Official admissions rules, rank, subject requirements, curriculum facts, cost, and real-world validation remain separate evidence layers.
Tool
What is the main answer
Suitable for use in the chosen major
Not suitable for use
Safer usage
Holland / RIASEC
Which work activities and major environments am I more attracted to?
Prioritize the major tasks and future work environment worth studying
Decide on majors, predict admissions, predict employment
Generate a list of "Which major tasks do I want to verify?"
MBTI
How do I describe communication, decision and collaboration preferences?
Raise questions about study and teamwork experiences
Choose majors, identify a best learning method or predict long-term exhaustion
Check experiences, performance and costs through real assignments and collaboration
Big Five Personality
How do I describe behavioral tendencies and stress experiences?
Raise questions about pacing, feedback and support needs
Determine ability, career success or individual adaptation
Check whether proposed support helps through actual timetables, assignments and feedback
Official application information
Can I apply, how to apply, and what rules apply?
Confirm scores, ranks, subject-combination requirements, enrollment plans, and restrictions in admissions regulations
Be replaced by any assessment
Use it as the final authority for the formal application
Real-world verification
Am I willing to continue investing in this direction?
Test hypotheses through courses, interviews, projects, and internships
Be replaced by a single assessment result
Put interests and preferences into real tasks to test
What If Your RIASEC and MBTI Results Do Not Match?
Apparent disagreement is expected because the tools ask different questions.
Situation
What it may mean
How not to interpret
Next step to verify
RIASEC points to research/technology, MBTI shows a greater need for discussion and external feedback
Investigate whether you enjoy analytical tasks when they include discussion or feedback; the result alone does not establish fit.
"I am not suitable for research-oriented majors"
Looking for research-based courses that require presentations, team discussions or application scenarios
RIASEC points toward Social or education-related activities, MBTI shows that you need a lot of independent time
Check how different forms and amounts of contact affect you in real tasks; an introverted preference does not establish tolerance for emotional labor.
"I am not suitable for people-related majors"
Compare how much and what kind of interpersonal contact is involved in education, consulting, public services, content design, and similar fields.
RIASEC interests are scattered and MBTI results do not show a strong pattern
You may lack real major exposure and cannot judge for the time being
"I am not interested"
Do 3 low-cost course/project experiences first
MBTI is clear, but RIASEC is not obvious
You have a clearer preference description, while task interests remain uncertain; this does not identify an effective learning method.
“Just choose by MBTI”
Use RIASEC or a course list to identify the work and learning tasks that interest you
RIASEC is clear, but parents expect the opposite
Interest clues and family constraints conflict
“The test said it, so parents must be wrong”
Use curriculum, employment information, school resources and cost risks to discuss together
Do not decide which result is “correct.” Use the difference to design a more precise course, task, or environment check.
A More Stable Major Selection Process: Scores, Majors, Interests, Real-World Validation
Gaokao college application major selection can follow a 6-step process:
Formal-condition screening: Check current official subject, enrollment, batch, physical-exam and single-subject rules. Assess rank references, course preparation, resources and costs separately.
Initial Major Screening List: Compile a list of 10–20 potential majors from the available options; avoid focusing solely on 2–3 popular-sounding names at the outset.
Optional reflection: Use existing activity experience or RIASEC clues to ask task questions. Use MBTI-style descriptions only as preference hypotheses and test alternative study strategies.
Real-World Validation: Validate through public lectures, course syllabi, interviews with upperclassmen, project experiences, and industry interviews.
Application Choice Prioritization: Rank choices by university level, city, family cost, risk tolerance, transfer policies, and official information.
The key to this process is sequence. Do not let interest tests determine your major choice in Step 1, nor should you overlook official rules in the final step.
From Test Results to Major Verification Checklist
The value of a test result is the quality of the questions it helps you ask.
Test signals
Possible prompts
What major information should be checked
What should be done to verify reality
Direct conclusions are prohibited
Investigative (I) is relatively high
More interested in analysis, experiments, and system causes
Does the major have mathematics, statistics, experiments, and research methods courses
Listen to an introductory class and do a small analysis task
"I must be suitable for scientific research"
Social (S) is relatively high
More sensitive to help, education, communication, and feedback from people
Whether the major has a lot of contact with people, internships, interviews, teaching or services
Interviews with seniors to understand the true emotional labor and communication intensity
"I am suitable for all liberal arts/social sciences"
Enterprising (E) is relatively high
Interested in organization, impact, business feedback and result orientation
Does this field involve business analysis, management, operations, or project work?
Participate in a competition/community project/business case analysis
"I must study business"
MBTI suggests a preference for clear structure
It may be necessary to clarify the course path and deadlines
Is the curriculum plan clear and the course highly open
Compare the types of coursework and assessment methods
"Open majors are definitely not suitable for me"
MBTI suggests a preference for exploration and discussion
May need discussion, feedback and interdisciplinary space
Are there seminars, project-based courses, cross-department course selection
Attend open classes or interview current students about their learning experiences
"Traditional classrooms are definitely not suitable for me"
Higher stress sensitivity in the Big Five
May need clearer pacing and support systems
Sources of major stress, exam density, elimination mechanisms
Understand real class schedules, homework loads, and senior year feedback
"I can't take a challenging major"
Common Mistakes: These Will Bias Your Testing
Treating a test result as a direct list of recommended majors.
Looking only at the highest code or type while ignoring weak or conflicting evidence.
Using MBTI preferences as proof of ability.
Treating a popular or newly named major as evidence of future demand.
Letting one parent, teacher, influencer, or test replace official admissions facts.
Reading the major name without checking core courses, projects, and graduation requirements.
Using a single result to predict admission, salary, employment, or career success.
Skipping real-world verification because a description “sounds like me.”
Unsafe shortcut
Why it's dangerous
Safer approach
Select only by popular majors
Popularity does not mean that the course is suitable, nor does it mean that you will have a good job in the future
Check courses, curriculum plans, employment destinations and your own work interests
Only choose according to parents' recommendations
Parents may be more familiar with the risks, but they may not necessarily understand your learning experience
Put the stability, city, and cost that your parents care about together with your interests in the table
Select only by MBTI
MBTI is not an aptitude test, nor a major matching tool
Use it to understand learning and collaboration preferences, not to determine majors
Select only by Holland results
RIASEC is an interest clue, not an admission and employment prediction
Convert the results to a major verification checklist
Only look at the employment salary list
Salary lists often ignore individual differences, regions, academic qualifications, and industry cycles
Also look at course investment, industry paths, school resources, and personal constraints
Don’t read the course content
Major names are easy to mislead, what really affects the four-year experience is the curriculum and training methods
Check core courses, experimental courses, graduation requirements and project requirements
Not looking at the subject-combination requirements
It may lead to the inability to apply for the major at all or the range of options is greatly reduced
Look at the province, major group and school admission regulations first
Not doing reality verification
It is easy to regard the imaginary major as the real major
Doing open classes, interviews, small projects, and internship observations
After Testing, How Do You Verify Whether a Major Is Worth Applying For?
You can use this "major reality verification checklist":
Review the core courses of the major—not just the name of the major.
Check the curriculum plan and graduation requirements to see what you're actually trained in over four years.
Examine subject requirements, enrollment plans, and admissions regulations to confirm whether eligibility criteria are met.
Interview 2–3 real senior students, faculty members, or industry professionals.
Take a public lecture, an introductory project, or a sample course assignment to experience the actual workload of the major.
Note whether you feel more interested, more resistant, more fatigued, or willing to dive deeper.
Then combine these insights with your score rank, university level, city location, family constraints, major-transfer policies, and employment information for final decision-making.
Test hypotheses through reality verification to filter assumptions. Final application decisions must still be based on information from each province's examination authority, the Sunshine Gaokao, official admission rules, subject requirements, and score rankings. FermatMind is not an official college application system and does not predict admission outcomes.
How should parents and students divide responsibilities effectively?
College application major choices are often not an individual decision, but a joint family decision. The most common point of conflict is that parents tend to focus on risk, while students prioritize interest or personal feelings. Neither side should be overlooked.
Decision-making tasks
Who is more suitable to take the lead
Why
Outputs
Organizing scores, rankings, and admissions plans
The student and parents together
Need to be accurate, patient, and avoid missing conditions
Fillable major scope form
Course experience and interest judgment
Student-led
The next four years will be the student's actual learning experience
Course-interest ratings
Cost, city, family constraints
Parents participate
Involving family resources and risk tolerance
Realistic constraints list
Major interviews
Student-led, parents assist in finding resources
Can directly change the understanding of majors
Interview records
Final application preference order
Shared decision-making
Need to balance rules, interests, risks and resources
Draft application preference order
The worst approach is: parents say only "this is stable," and the student says only "I don't like it." A better approach is: both parties review the same major verification chart together.
What to Do Next
If you currently have no clear direction, you can optionally use the RIASEC career interest assessment and convert the results into 3–5 major interest areas worth further exploration.
If you already have several candidate majors, compare their actual teaching and assignment formats. You can optionally use MBTI-style preference reflection to formulate questions, then compare understanding, outcomes and costs across study approaches.
Can Major Selection for College Admissions Rely on Tests?
No. Testing can only help you explore hypotheses, such as which types of courses, tasks, or work environments you might prefer. Formal major selection still requires consideration of percentile rankings, subject requirements, enrollment plans, admission regulations, course content, family constraints, and real-world validation.
How does the RIASEC career interest assessment help in choosing a major?
RIASEC can help you identify the types of work activities and occupational environments that most attract you. When choosing a major, it is best used to generate a list of "major tasks I should focus on studying," rather than providing direct major recommendations.
Can MBTI be used to choose a university major?
MBTI-style descriptions can prompt questions about communication, decision and collaboration preferences. They do not identify effective learning methods, establish ability, choose majors or predict admission, employment or career success. Check any proposed study approach through actual understanding, performance and costs.
What If Your RIASEC and MBTI Results Do Not Match?
Don't jump to conclusions about who is right or wrong. RIASEC assesses interest in work activities and occupational environments, while MBTI examines preferences in learning, communication, and decision-making. When results differ, translate them into two questions: What tasks would I like to learn? Which study and collaboration experiences should I test in this context? Then validate through coursework, interviews, and projects.
Should you look at scores, ranks, subject requirements, or interest tests first?
Check current official eligibility and admission rules, subject requirements and the enrollment plan first. Use scores, rank and historical admission data for an uncertain application strategy, keeping them separate from mandatory conditions. Interest tests are optional reflection and do not replace either layer.
Can career interest tests predict my future employment?
No. Career interest assessments can help you identify interest areas and preferences for work activities, but they cannot predict employment, income, promotions, or career success. Employment outcomes are also influenced by school resources, individual abilities, industry cycles, location, internship experiences, and opportunities.
After completing tests, how do you verify whether a major is worth applying for?
First convert test results into 3–5 potential major directions, then investigate core courses, curriculum plans, subject requirements, career pathways, and actual student experiences. Attend at least one open house session, conduct one interview with upperclassmen or peer students, or engage in a low-cost project before deciding whether to include it on the application choices list.
Is FermatMind an official college application system?
No. FermatMind provides tools for self-awareness and career interest exploration and is not an official college application system operated by Sunshine Gaokao, the Ministry of Education, CHSI (China Higher Education Student Information and Career Center), or any provincial examination institute. It also does not provide admission predictions. Official applications should still be made through authorized platforms, admissions guidelines, and rules established by each provincial examination institute.
Keep Moving Forward
If you want to turn "I don't know what major to choose" into a discussable list, you can optionally use the RIASEC career interest assessment, then convert your interest results into major validation questions.
If you already know a few directions, but want to understand your learning and collaboration preferences, you can optionally use the MBTI Personality Test.
Remember: The test is not the answer; it's a tool to clarify your questions. What truly determines the ordering of application choices is eligibility requirements, course understanding, real-world validation, and shared family decisions.
Choosing a Major After Gaokao: Tests, Courses and Evidence | FermatMind
