OBSERVARE
Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa
e-ISSN: 1647-7251
VOL15, N.º 2, TD1
Thematic Dossier – Brazil-China relations:
The rise of modern International Order
December 2024
274
THE GENDER GAP REVERSAL IN HIGHER EDUCATION:
THE CASE OF BRAZIL AND CHINA
TELI CHEN
A22092100031@cityu.edu.mo
English teacher at Hainan Vocational College of Politics and Law and a Ph.D. candidate at the
Institute for Research on Portuguese-speaking Countries, City University of Macau (China). She
holds a Master’s degree in Foreign Linguistics and Applied Linguistics from Hainan University and
a Bachelor’s degree from the Department of English at Beijing International Studies University.
Her current research interests include English teaching and Portuguese-speaking countries. She
has published over ten articles in Chinese journals. https://orcid.org/0009-0004-2951-6817.
SUZANA LOPES SALGADO RIBEIRO
suzana.ribeiro@falaescrita.com.br
Bachelor’s degree in History from the University of São Paulo, and Master's and Ph.D. from the
University of São Paulo (2002; 2017). She is a Professor of the History Course and the Master in
Human Development, and Professional Master in Education - University of Taubaté (Brazil), and
the Master in Management and Regional Development – Southern Minas University Center
(UNIS). She is carrying out her post-doctorate at Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo (PUC-
SP), and is a researcher at the Center for Studies in Oral History.
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0310-0694.
FRANCISCO JOSÉ LEANDRO
fleandro@um.edu.mo
PhD in political science and international relations from the Catholic University of Portugal in
2010, and habilitation from ISCTE–University Institute of Lisbon in 2022. From 2016 to 2017,
Prof. Leandro took part in a post-doctoral research programme on state monopolies in China —
One belt, one road studies. In 2014, 2017 and 2020, he was awarded an Institute of European
Studies in Macau (IEEM) Academic Research Grant, which is a major component of the Asia-
Europe Comparative Studies Research Project. From 2014 to 2018, he was Programme
Coordinator at the Institute of Social and Legal Studies, Faculty of Humanities at the University of
Saint Joseph in Macau. From 2018 to 2023 he was Associate Dean of the Institute for Research
on Portuguese-Speaking Countries at the City University of Macau. He is currently Associate
Professor with Habilitation in International Relations in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the
University of Macau (China). His most recent publications are: The Belt and Road Initiative: An
Old Archetype of a New Development Model (2020), Palgrave Macmillan; Geopolitics of Iran
(2021), Palgrave Macmillan; The Handbook of Special Economic Zones (2021), IGI Global;
Disentangled Vision on Higher Education: Preparing the Generation Next (2023), Peter Lang
Publishers; The Palgrave Handbook of Globalization with Chinese Characteristics (2023), Palgrave
Macmillan; Changing the Paradigm of Energy Geopolitics: Resources and Pathways in the Light of
Global Climate Challenges (2023), Peter Lang Publishers; Portuguese-speaking Small Island
Developing States: The development Journeys of Cabo Verde, São Tomé and Príncipe, and
Timor-Leste (2023), Palgrave Macmillan; The Palgrave Handbook on China-Europe-Africa
Relations: Legacies and the New International Order (2024), Palgrave Macmillan.
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1443-5828.
Abstract
This study investigated the reversal of gender disparity in enrollment in higher education in
Brazil and China (both of whom members of BRICS) from having more male than female
students in the past, to now having more female than male students. This reversal began for
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e-ISSN: 1647-7251
VOL 15 N.º 2, TD 1
Thematic Dossier
Brazil-China relations: The rise of modern International Order
December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
275
Brazil in 1988, and for China in 2008. The paper examined factors that contributed to the
reversal through employing a qualitative methodology, including an extensive review of
literature, analysis of statistical data and official documents from the Brazilian and Chinese
governments, the United Nations, as well as the World Bank, and a comparative analysis
between Brazil and China, exploring such aspects as feminist movement, legal framework,
economic development, expansion of higher education, and demographic factors. The study
is significant as it illuminates the evolving landscape of higher education and gender dynamics
in Brazil and China to offer valuable insights for other countries for reference. In particular,
the case studies on Brazil and China can inform international efforts to address gender
disparity and create more inclusive and equitable systems not only in education but also in
other fields.
Keywords
Gender, Reversal, Higher Education, Brazil, China.
Resumo
O presente estudo tem como objetivo investigar a inversão da desigualdade de gênero nas
matrículas no ensino superior no Brasil e na China, dois países membros do BRICS. Vários
países vieram testemunhar uma transição da desigualdade de género no ensino superior,
partindo de “mais estudantes do sexo masculino do que feminino” a “mais estudantes do sexo
feminino do que estudantes do masculino”, como o caso do Brasil e da China. A inversão da
desigualdade de género no ensino superior aconteceu em 1988 e 2008 no Brasil e na China,
respetivamente. Com base neste facto, este artigo pretende responder à seguinte questão:
Quais são os fatores que contribuem para a inversão da desigualdade de gênero no ensino
superior no Brasil e na China? Para o efeito, esta pesquisa adota uma abordagem qualitativa,
incluindo uma análise de literatura, de dados estatísticos e documentos oficiais dos governos
brasileiro e chinês, das Nações Unidas e do Banco Mundial, bem como uma análise
comparativa sobre as semelhanças e diferenças entre o Brasil e a China no tocante à inversão
da desigualdade de gênero. Neste sentido, através desta investigação, pretendemos
identificar os fatores que contribuem para esta transição a partir de aspetos como movimentos
feministas, quadro jurídico, desenvolvimento económico, expansão do ensino superior e
fatores demográficos. A importância deste estudo reside em suas implicações para a
compreensão da evolução panorâmica do ensino superior e da dinâmica de género a nível
global. A análise da inversão da desigualdade de género no Brasil e na China pode servir de
referência a outros países. As perceções derivadas deste estudo de caso podem chamar
esforços globais para colmatar a questão de desigualdade de género e criar sistemas
educativos de maior inclusão e equidade. Além disso, a abordagem na questão de género no
ensino superior pode ajudar a despertar uma atenção crescente, para lidar com a
desigualdade de género em outros domínios.
Palavras-chave
Gênero, Reversão, Ensino Superior, Brasil, China.
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e-ISSN: 1647-7251
VOL 15 N.º 2, TD 1
Thematic Dossier
Brazil-China relations: The rise of modern International Order
December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
276
How to cite this article
Chen, Teli, Ribeiro, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro & Leandro, Francisco José (2024). The Gender
Gap Reversal in Higher Education: The Case of Brazil and China. Janus.net, e-journal of
international relations. VOL 15 N.º 2, TD1 – Temathic Dossier – “Brazil - China Relations: The Rise
Of Modern International Order”. December 2024, pp. 274-289. https://doi.org/10.26619/1647-
7251.DT0324.13.
Article received on 10 June 2024 and accepted for publication on 15 September 2024.
JANUS.NET, e-journal of International Relations
e-ISSN: 1647-7251
VOL 15 N.º 2, TD 1
Thematic Dossier
Brazil-China relations: The rise of modern International Order
December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
277
THE GENDER GAP REVERSAL IN HIGHER EDUCATION:
THE CASE OF BRAZIL AND CHINA
1
TELI CHEN
SUZANA LOPES SALGADO RIBEIRO
FRANCISCO JOSÉ LEANDRO
1. Introduction
For many bygone decades, higher education was a luxury for women, and male had
always outnumbered female students and graduates (UNESCO & IESALC, 2021, p. 11).
However, with the rapid expansion of enrollment in education worldwide, more and more
women have had the chance to access higher education. This trend has continued to a
point that, now, a number of countries have witnessed a turnaround—i.e., there are now
more female than male students in higher education—a phenomenon referred to as
higher education’s “gender gap reversal”. Globally, this reversal commenced in 2002
(UNESCO & IESALC, 2021, p. 3), and, currently, female students are over-represented
in higher education in 74% of the world’s countries (including both developed and
developing countries) with available data (UNESCO, 2020, p.14). Brazil and China are
two of these countries.
Gender parity is measured using the Gender Parity Index (GPI), which refers to the
female-to-male ratio of a given indicator. A GPI of 1 indicates parity between the
genders; a GPI below 1 indicates disparity in favour of males, and a GPI above 1 indicates
disparity in favour of females. The further from 1 the parity index is, the greater the
disparity between females and males (UNESCO, 2024). For Brazil, a gender imbalance in
education (i.e., more men than women students) had been part of the reality for almost
450 years (Beltrão & Alves, 2009, p. 2) until the gap began to narrow in the 1980s.
Available data from the World Bank show that the GPI for higher education enrollment in
Brazil was 0.95 in 1979, 1.0 in 1983 and 1.05 in 1988 (data unavailable between 1984
and 1987), and has remained above 1.05 from then on (World Bank, 2024a), indicating
that there was already gender parity in higher education in 1983, and, by 1988, the
gender gap had already begun to reverse. As for China, the GPI for higher education
1
The authors would like to thank for the kind invitation to participate in this special issue.
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e-ISSN: 1647-7251
VOL 15 N.º 2, TD 1
Thematic Dossier
Brazil-China relations: The rise of modern International Order
December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
278
enrollment was below 1.0 before 2007, at 1.0 in 2007 and above 1.0 from 2008 on,
indicating gender parity in higher education in 2007, and gender gap reversal beginning
in 2008, with the GPI holding steady at 1.04 thereafter (World Bank, 2024a).
The reversal of gender gap in higher education has attracted a great deal of attention
from scholars all over the world. A number of studies have examined the phenomenon
in developed countries—especially European countries and the U.S—while some explored
the reversal’s driving forces. Riphahn and Schwientek (2015) investigated mechanisms
behind the reversal of gender gap in secondary and tertiary education in Germany, and
found that neither individual/family background nor labour market characteristics
appeared to be strongly associated with the gender gap in education, but the gap in
tertiary education was correlated with the development of class sizes and social norms.
Reijnders (2018) explains the gender gap reversal in higher education from the
perspective of changes in the wage structure and expectations about marriage in
America, and claims that the most important driving force for the reversal is the decline
in marriage rate, as single women have a greater incentive to invest in education than
single men. Goldin, Katz and Kuziemko (2006) explored the gender gap reversal in
college attendance and graduation in America, and found that females’ increasing
expectation of economic returns from higher education contributed to their improved
college preparation and performance. Bossavie and Kanninen (2018) developed a unified
conceptual framework to formulate and test two main hypotheses, namely, tail
hypothesis and mean hypothesis, to better understand the forces behind the reversal.
Their results show that the lower variance in scholastic performance among females has
been a driver for the reversal.
Gender gap reversal in education has also attracted attention from Chinese and Brazilian
scholars. Li (2016) discusses the phenomenon of gender gap reversal in education in
China and its challenges to society, including difficulties (e.g., discrimination) that women
face when looking for good employment, wage gap between women and men with the
same educational credentials, conflicts between work and family, among others. Wang,
Wang and Hu (2022) explored the effects that gender gap reversal in education has on
how men and women match up to get married, revealing that China now faces severe
education-related marriage imbalance—the higher a woman’s education level, the more
difficult it is for her to find a husband; the reverse is also true, i.e., the less educated a
man is, the more difficult it is for him to find someone to marry—and the problem will
persist for a while. Liu and Zhang (2023) studied the gender gap reversal among China’s
undergraduates and postgraduates, but focusing mainly on data to prove the trend. Yan
and Meng (2023) divided the factors contributing to the gender gap reversal in higher
education into external (e.g., economic and social development and progress made in
gender equality) and internal factors (e.g., higher return of higher education for women
and women’s competitiveness in education compared to men in terms of academic
performance). There is also a smattering of studies on gender gap reversal in Brazil’s
education system. Beltrão and Alves (2009) analyzed the onset time of the reversal there
by laying out the development of female education and claimed that universal public
policies as well as cultural and behavioral changes were central factors during the
process.
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e-ISSN: 1647-7251
VOL 15 N.º 2, TD 1
Thematic Dossier
Brazil-China relations: The rise of modern International Order
December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
279
Nevertheless, most studies have focused on the situations in developed countries; few
have focused on China and Brazil. As China and Brazil have the world’s second and
seventh largest populations, respectively, and both are members of BRICS as well as
being two of the most important economies in the world, analysing the gender gap
reversal in higher education in these two countries can offer valuable insights on gender
issues for other countries not only regarding the realm of higher education but also in
other fields. This paper therefore studies and compares the Brazilian and Chinese higher
education systems from a gender perspective in an attempt to understand the factors
that have contributed to their gender gap reversal.
2. Factors Leading to Gender Gap Reversal in Brazilian and Chinese
Higher Education
Both Brazil and China have greatly improved gender equality in society, including in their
education landscape; more and more women now have access to higher education, which
gives them more opportunities to improve their lives and social statuses. The reversal of
gender gap in higher education can be attributed to both external and internal factors:
the external (i.e., environmental) factors make it possible for female students to receive
higher education, while the internal factors (e.g., motivation) allow more and more
female students to finish secondary education and enter higher education. Due to length
limitations, this paper will focus its scope on the external factors that led to the gender
gap reversal in higher education in Brazil and China. Specifically, we identify the most
common and most important factors, and explore how they created a favorable
environment to facilitate the reversal.
2.1 Feminist Movements
The term “feminism” was coined in 1837 by Charles Fourier (1772–1837), a French
sociologist and a strong advocate for women’s rights (Old Times, 2021). Feminism
originated in the U.S. and Europe, then spread to Asia, Africa and Latin America, and the
rest of the world (Mohajan, 2022: 2). Various definitions have been given on feminism,
but a unified definition has remained elusive so far. Nevertheless, feminism has a
universal goal: pursuing gender equality.
The world has witnessed four waves of feminist movement. The first one took place from
the second half of the 19th century to the early 20th century, the main goals of which
were to fight for women (especially married women)’s suffrage, education and
employment, with the focus being on suffrage. The second wave began in the 1960s and
lasted until the 1990s. This wave aimed to fight for equal education and employment
opportunities, maternity leave, birth control and abortion rights (Mohajan, 2022, p. 1).
The third wave, which began in the 1990s, embraced a spirit of rebellion in lieu of reform,
and encouraged women to express their sexuality and individuality (Pruitt, 2022). The
fourth wave of feminism began around 2012. It mainly relied on social media to improve
gender equality in society (Mohajan, 2022, p. 4). These feminist movements have helped
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December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
280
to involve women in different fields of society, providing them with more opportunities
to receive education, improving gender equality overall.
Brazil has experienced its own four waves of feminist movements. The focus of the first
movement was also the right to vote. It was in 1932 that the New Brazilian Electoral
Code was promulgated, which symbolizes the approval of women’s right to vote (Zarbato
& Martins, 2022: 1132). The second wave of feminist movement in Brazil began in the
1960s—a period of military dictatorship—with one of its goals being to increase solidarity
among women and improve their self-esteem (Zarbato & Martins, 2022: 1133).
Participants of the movement included exiled feminists, political activists, university
students as well as academics (Perez & Ricoldi, 2023, p. 4). The third wave was driven
by the increasingly important voice that global NGOs added to gender discussions, which
included the Human Rights Conferences of the 1990s and the Fourth World Conference
on Women held in Beijing in 1995 (Perez & Ricoldi, 2023, p. 4). Finally, the fourth wave
in Brazil relates to the expanding use of the Internet (Perez & Ricoldi, 2023, p. 10).
Overall, it can be said that the feminist movements in Brazil have almost always been
aligned with feminist movements across the world.
On the other hand, China’s feminist movements were different, because of a deep-rooted
gendered hierarchy resulting from Confucian influences that dominated Chinese
societies, which, for centuries had imposed a so-called “three obediences and four
virtues” on women. The three “obediences” refer to the complete compliance of a girl to
her father and older brothers before marriage, a wife to her husband, and a widow to her
son. The four “virtues” refer to women assuming a submissive place in society and
modulating their behavior accordingly, restraining themselves in speech, clothing
themselves appropriately, and managing their households properly and cheerfully
(Cheng, 2009, p. 2260). In addition, the centuries-old practice of foot-binding prevented
women from participating in labour work and limited them to the domestic sphere,
rendering them almost fully dependent on men, resulting in an extremely low status of
women in society.
Feminist movements were introduced to China through the Chinese people’s own fight
against feudalism and imperialism, which in turn gave women hope to take back control
of their own lives. Today we consider the May Fourth Movement the first feminist
movement in China. The May Fourth Movement, which took place during the 1910s and
1920s, was mostly intellectuals protesting against not only the corruption and
incompetence of the warlord government but also foreign invasions of China. More
importantly, the movement represented an open, systematic challenge to the gender
segregation in Chinese society. and opened the door towards gender equality in all
spheres of life, ushering in equal education and employment opportunities for women
(Li, 2000, p. 2). Some of the May Fourth feminists later assumed important roles in the
Communist Party of China (CPC), which was formed in 1921. China’s national women’s
organisation, the All-China Democratic Women’s Federation (ACDWF), an official
institution to unite women from all walks of life, was established in 1949. In 1957, the
ACDWF became the All-China Women’s Federation (ACWF), enabling feminists to carry
out various reforms nationwide.
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December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
281
Moreover, with the establishment of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949,
feminists in CPC have been able to materialise their feminist objectives. In the early years
of the PRC, great achievements were made in such areas as women’s literacy, equal
employment and equal pay, political participation, reproductive health, and new public
facilities to reduce working women’s burden of childcare and housework (Wang, 2018, p.
160). However, during the Cultural Revolution, which lasted for 10 years from 1966 to
1976, the ACWF was forced to suspend itself, and women’s issues were completely
ignored (Li, 2000, p. 33). Since the economic reform which started in late 1978, great
achievements have been made in the development of women’s movement in China, and
women’s study programmes and research centres have been thriving. China can
therefore be regarded as a late bloomer in feminist movement; in turn, the movement
itself was characterised by social movements and reforms aligned with the development
of the CPC. Today, feminists in China are still devoted to improving gender equality in
the society, and people’s consciousness of gender equality is increasing.
Thanks to the influence of these feminist movements (and others worldwide), more and
more importance has been attached to women’s rights, and various actions have been
taken by different countries to improve gender equality on a global scale.
2.2 Legal Framework
Like many other countries in the world, Brazil and China had patriarchal societies that
prioritised men over women. Women have long been associated with being only
daughters and mothers responsible for housework and childcare (i.e., homemakers),
while men are breadwinners for the whole family. For Brazil, its patriarchy-induced
gender inequality was influenced by Iberian culture brought over from Portugal during
colonial times. Throughout most of Brazil’s history, labour was divided along women’s
reproductive and men’s productive roles, setting men and women into the public and
private spheres, respectively, and women were seen as not having any need to learn to
read or write (Beltrão & Alves, 2009, pp. 3, 7). In China, its patrilineal clan societies had
long valued sons over daughters, but the situation worsened during feudal times, when
Confucianism became a core ideology that dominated China for the next two millennia.
Women, considered subordinated to men, had very low status in both the family and
society; boys were given priority to receive education, while girls were confined at home.
Thanks to influence from feminist movements worldwide as well as in Brazil and China
mentioned above, a series of laws have been enacted to improve gender equality. In
Brazil, the imperial decree that provided women with the right to enroll in a university
course dates from 1881 (Beltrão & Alves, 2009, p. 4). The constitution of 1824 defined
basic education as a right of every citizen and an obligation of the state. The 1934
constitution guaranteed women’s right to vote. Brazil became one of the signatories of
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 (Moraes, 2020, p. 7), Article 2 of
which claims that “Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in [the]
Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion,
political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status” (UN,
1948). The Guidelines and Bases of Brazilian Education Law (LDB) made it possible for
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e-ISSN: 1647-7251
VOL 15 N.º 2, TD 1
Thematic Dossier
Brazil-China relations: The rise of modern International Order
December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
282
women who were receiving teacher’s training to take part in university entry exams in
1961 (Beltrão & Alves, 2009, p. 6). The constitution of 1988 established compulsory and
free basic education for citizens aged four to seventeen (Brazil, 1988). This not only
played a significant role in increasing the number of female students, but more
importantly established an obligatory qualifying exam system for the public to fill civil
service positions. Such a system tends to favour women with university degrees to
become lawyers, economists and other professions that used to be dominated by men
(Beltrão & Alves, 2009, p. 11), in turn providing greater motivation for women to pursue
higher education. The 1998 Brazilian Federal Constitution determines that education is a
right of all and that the state and the family have a duty to provide it (UNESCO, 2021).
Furthermore, two programmes which aimed to reduce poverty in the country, namely,
Bolsa Família (introduced in 2002) and Fome Zero (FZ) (introduced in 2003), have
increased school attendance and lowered inequality, including gender inequality, in Brazil
(Villiers, 2023: 327).
In China, equality between men and women was stipulated in the constitution of the
People’s Republic of China, which was established in 1949. Subsequently, with the
implementation of the “reform and opening up” policy, a series of laws and regulations
were promulgated to promote gender equality. Moreover, after the Fourth UN World
Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995, equality between men and women was
established as a basic state policy of China, symbolising that gender equality was to be
guaranteed through implementing laws and policies. Meanwhile, the Chinese government
also increased support, including enacting the Education Law in 1995, the Vocational
Education Law in 1996, a revised constitution in 2004, and a revised Compulsory
Education Law in 2006, to ensure that women have the same right, opportunities and
access to education as men (Wang & Gui, 2020, p. 81). It is clearly pointed out in Article
36 of the Education Law that “Schools and administrative departments concerned shall,
in accordance with relevant regulations of the State, ensure that females enjoy equal
rights with males in enrollment, admission to schools of a higher level, employment,
conferment of academic degrees, dispatch [sic] for study abroad, etc.” (People’s Republic
of China, 2001).
In the 1996 version of the Vocational Law, it is claimed in Article 7 that the state would
“take measures to help women receive vocational education” (People’s Republic of China,
1996), and Article 10 of the latest (2022) version reiterates that the state “guarantees
women's equal right to receiv[ing] vocational education” (People’s Republic of China,
2022). It is stated in Article 96 of the first version of the constitution (1954) and in Article
48 of 2004’s revised constitution that “Women in the People's Republic of China enjoy
equal rights with men in all aspects in political, economic, cultural, social and family life”
(People’s Government of Guangdong Province, 1954; National People’s Congress, 2004).
Finally, the Compulsory Education Law also gives girls the same right and obligation as
boys to receive compulsory education.
All of these on one hand spread the concept of gender equality and on the other enforce
the implementation of gender equality policies, which in practical ways have helped to
change people’s gender ideology, thus reducing and removing barriers between women
and education. Consequently, education, which used to be a privilege reserved for men
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VOL 15 N.º 2, TD 1
Thematic Dossier
Brazil-China relations: The rise of modern International Order
December 2024, pp. 274-289
The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
The Case of Brazil and China
Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
283
can now be accessed by women. This in turn has helped to increase the number of female
students, especially in higher education.
2.3 Economic Development
Economic development and education investment produce greatly positive impact on
higher education (Li, Gao & Chen, 2022). Economic development is the foundation for
higher education development, and higher education development helps to increase
women’s access to higher education. According to data from the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) (2021), the GDP per capita in Brazil was 1,200 US dollars in 1980, increasing
to 2,240 US dollars in 1988 and 8,270 in 2021, with some fluctuations in between.
Particularly notable was its steady, rapid increase from 2002 to 2011, peaking at 13,630
US dollars in 2011. In China, the GDP per capita saw a massive general growth trend
from 89.5 US dollars in 1960 to 12,720.2 US dollars in 2022, with particularly dramatic
growth from the year 2001 onwards (World Bank, 2024b).
Such economic development has enabled the governments to implement compulsory
education both in Brazil and China, allowing more and more families to send their
children, both boys and girls, to pursue higher education. This has increased women’s
possibility to get education and then higher education. Meanwhile, along with the
economic development, significant achievements have also been made in poverty
reduction in both Brazil and China. With the international poverty line of $2.15 as
reference, Brazil's poverty rate decreased from 23.95% in 1981 to 12.27% in 1986 and
3.51% in 2022. Even more prominent achievements have been made in China: the
poverty rate decreased rapidly from 71.96% in 1990 to 48.14% in 1996 and 0.11% in
2020 (World Bank, 2022). Poverty reduction has further helped to reduce families’
economic burden, which has partly resulted in the increasing attention paid to children’s
education. As higher education is linked to women's socioeconomic status and their
societal role and position (Moore, 1988, p. 103), women are more motivated to seek
opportunities for education once the economic conditions allow. Moreover, women tend
not to spare any effort to stand out academically.
2.4 Expansion of Higher Education
Higher education develops in response to the need of economic development, which in
turn provides the basis for the expansion of higher education. Such expansion renders
higher education no longer a luxury, but something available to an increasing number of
people, both men and women. According to Martin Trow, higher education is developed
over three phases, namely, elite, mass and universal higher education, which are marked
by gross enrollment rates of less than 15%, between 15%–50%, and over 50%,
respectively (Marginson, 2017, p. 1). As higher education transitions from the “elite” to
the “universal” phase, the number of female students tends to increase rapidly and
exceed the number of male students.
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Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
284
Brazil and China have both experienced an expansion of their higher education, though
the expansion happened much earlier for Brazil than China. In Brazil, as early as in the
1960s, the development of state bureaucracies and large companies opened a new job
market, and the higher education diploma constituted a guarantee of access to this
market (Sampaio, 2020, p. 14). After the abolition of slavery in 1988 and the
proclamation of the Republic in 1989, the constitution of the Republic decentralised
higher education and allowed the creation of private institutions, which led to the
immediate expansion of the higher education system (Sampaio, 2020: 7). In China, it
was not until 1977 (after the Cultural Revolution, 1966–1976) that China resumed
administering college entrance examinations. After China introduced the reform and
opening up policy, the demand for higher education has increased rapidly, and to satisfy
both individuals’ and society’s need for higher education, a higher education expansion
policy was introduced in 1999. This has rapidly boosted the number of students—
particularly female—enrolled in higher education.
Table 1 below shows the expansion of enrollment and the increase of female students in
Brazilian and Chinese higher education. In China, the gross enrollment rate of higher
education in 1979 was only 1%, ten per cent lower than that of Brazil; it increased to
14% in 2003 after the higher education expansion policy of 1999, and to 17% in 2004,
which indicates that China entered the mass higher education phase in 2004.
Additionally, the GPI of enrollment in Table 1 indicates that the gender gap reversal
began in 2008, with the gross enrollment rate at that point being 22% and GPI reaching
1.04. In Brazil, the gross enrollment rate of higher education in 1979 was 11%, much
higher than that of China at the time, and it increased to 15% in 1999, which indicates
that Brazil entered the phase of mass higher education in 1999. However, Brazil’s GPI of
enrollment indicates that the gender gap reversal happened in Brazilian higher education
in 1988, when the gross enrollment rate was 11%.
Table 1 Higher Education in Brazil and China
Higher Education in China
Higher Education in Brazil
Year
Gross Enrollment
Rate
GPI of
Enrollment
Gross Enrollment
Rate
GPI of Enrollment
1979
1%
0.33
11%
0.95
1983
Not Available
Not Available
11%
1
1988
3%
Not Available
11%
1.05
1994
4%
0.53
11%
1.12
1998
6%
Not Available
13%
1.19
1999
7%
Not Available
15%
1.21
2003
14%
0.83
Not Available
Not Available
2004
17%
0.89
Not Available
Not Available
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285
2007
21%
1
Not Available
Not Available
2008
22%
1.04
Not Available
Not Available
2009
23%
1.06
Not Available
Not Available
2014
44%
1.15
47%
1.26
2019
57%
1.2
53%
1.27
2022
72%
1.15
60%
1.32
Source: World Bank, 2024a; World Bank, 2024c.
Therefore, things are a bit different between China and Brazil in that the gender gap
reversal happened in China after it entered the mass higher education phase, while it
happened in Brazil before it entered the mass phase. Nevertheless, they have both
witnessed rapid higher education expansion, as well as dramatic increases in the number
of female students.
2.5 Demographic Factors
Data from the World Bank show a decline in fertility rate not only for Brazil and China
but across the world (Table 2). Between 1970 and 2022, Brazil’s fertility rate decreased
from 5.0 to 1.6 children per woman, while China’s decreased from 6.1 to 1.2, both now
falling below the global average. Compared with Brazil, China saw a much more dramatic
drop in fertility rate between 1970 and 1980, due to the implementation of the family
planning (i.e., one-child) policy in the 1970s.
Table 2 Fertility Rate, Total (Births per Woman)
1970
1980
1990
2000
2010
2022
World
4.8
3.7
3.3
2.7
2.6
2.3
Brazil
5.0
4.0
2.9
2.3
1.8
1.6
China
6.1
2.7
2.5
1.6
1.7
1.2
Source: World Bank, 2024d
According to the Resource Dilution theory, parents only have finite access to resources
such as time, energy and money, and as the number of children increases, the amount
of resources available to each child decreases, which will have negative impact on their
educational outcomes (Downey, 1995, p. 746). Moreover, girls will receive much less
resources (especially education, including higher education) than boys due to the
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The Gender Gap Reversal in Higher Education:
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Teli Chen, Suzana Lopes Salgado Ribeiro, Francisco José Leandro
286
aforementioned patriarchal traditions. Having fewer children will enable parents to giver
more—not to mention, equal—attention and resources (including education) to each
child, and the result of this has been significant increase in girls’ access to higher
education. Furthermore, according to Becker’s Human Capital Investment theory, people
make human capital investment decisions based on returns on the investment; those
with higher returns will receive more human capital investment (Wang, 2021, p. 8). When
girls outperform boys academically, parents become more willing to invest in their
daughters to receive higher education.
3. Conclusion
Gender gap reversal in higher education has been an ongoing global phenomenon, but,
for Brazil and China, it has already been well underway since 1988 and 2008,
respectively. The main external factors contributing to the reversal include: (1) feminist
movement, which has not only brought people’s attention to gender equality, helped
create an environment and more opportunities for women to receive higher education,
but also laid a foundation for the formulation and enforcement of laws to promote gender
equality; (2) legal framework, which ensures the implementation of gender equality
policies in reality and guarantees women’s right to education; (3) economic development,
which helps to reduce families’ economic burden and increase women’s opportunities to
receive higher education; (4) higher education expansion, which makes higher education
accessible to women and leads to tremendous increase of women students; and (5)
demographic factors, which allows women equal education resources as men. It is worth
mentioning that these factors do not work separately. Instead, the gender gap reversal
in higher education has been the combined result of all of these factors at play.
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