{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T06:13:02Z","timestamp":1779257582557,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":19,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1779235200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Psychol."],"abstract":"<jats:p>As a pivotal pathway for talent advancement in higher education, the postgraduate entrance examination not only shapes the depth of individuals' academic engagement and the breadth of career development, but also carries candidates' distinctive trajectories of psychological growth across the long preparation cycle. To explore these trajectories during exam preparation, this study focuses on postgraduate entrance examination candidates and adopts a qualitative research design. Analysis of candidates' preparation experiences shows that their psychological States change dynamically over time: in the early stage, they are often marked by confusion. In the middle stage they tend to slip into anxiety, and in the late stage some candidates respond with composure whereas others become so tense under pressure that they approach psychological breakdown. When confronting confusion, anxiety, and a range of other difficulties, candidates regulate themselves through goal orientation, emotional regulation, and social support, thereby preparing for the examination in a better condition. The preparation experience and psychological growth accumulated by these candidates provide valuable points of reference for subsequent cohorts. Accordingly, drawing on the interview findings, this paper proposes stage-specific recommendations in the hope of offering practical and effective guidance and support for more candidates.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1801825","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T05:45:02Z","timestamp":1779255902000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Dream-chasing mindscapes: an inquiry into the psychological change process of postgraduate entrance examination candidates"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Chen","family":"Xiaoman","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Marxism, Xihua University, Chengdu","place":["Sichuan, China"]},{"name":"School of Educational Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu","place":["Sichuan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Lu","family":"Zihui","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Marxism, Xihua University, Chengdu","place":["Sichuan, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Shao","family":"Juan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The Open University of Sichuan","place":["Chengdu, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e0339529","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0339529","article-title":"The interplay of family capital and learning engagement: mediating mechanisms in undergraduates' intentions to take the postgraduate entrance examination","volume":"21","author":"Cao","year":"2026","journal-title":"PLoS ONE"},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"14","DOI":"10.16034\/j.cnki.10-1318\/c.2024.03.014","article-title":"A study on the image construction and social interaction of \u201cpostgraduate entrance exam takers\u201d in short videos","volume":"43","author":"Chen","year":"2024","journal-title":"China Youth Soc. Sci."},{"key":"B3","unstructured":"2024"},{"key":"B4","unstructured":"Analysis of Annual Postgraduate Application Data [EB\/OL]\n          \n          2026"},{"key":"B5","first-page":"370","volume-title":"Social Research Methods","author":"Feng","year":"2018"},{"key":"B6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2","DOI":"10.16034\/j.cnki.10-1318\/c.2024.03.005","article-title":"Purchasing hope and reconstructing the time and space of intensive study: a study on the emotional experience and social mentality of \u201cpreparing for postgraduate entrance examination in institutions.\u201d","volume":"43","author":"Guan","year":"2024","journal-title":"China Youth Soc. Sci."},{"key":"B7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"83","DOI":"10.19411\/j.cnki.1007-8606.2021.03.012","article-title":"An analysis of the causes and guiding strategies of the postgraduate entrance examination boom in recent years: from the perspective of Bourdieu's field theory and cultural capital theory","volume":"25","author":"Ji","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Yangzhou Univ. (High. Educ. Res. Ed.)"},{"key":"B8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"9","DOI":"10.1007\/s10734-019-00374-8","article-title":"Exploring the factors of pursuing a master's degree in South Korea","volume":"78","author":"Jung","year":"2019","journal-title":"High. 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Educ."},{"key":"B10","unstructured":"The Number of Applicants for Professional Master's Programs in the 2016 Postgraduate Entrance Examination Accounted for 48% [EB\/OL]\n          \n          2015"},{"key":"B11","unstructured":"Notice on Doing a Good Job in Employment and Entrepreneurship of Graduates from Ordinary Colleges and Universities Nationwide in the Class of 2025 [EB\/OL]\n          \n          2024"},{"key":"B12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"248","DOI":"10.13342\/j.cnki.cjhp.2016.02.024","article-title":"The relationship between college students' social support and learning adaptation: the mediating role of psychological resilience","volume":"24","author":"Sang","year":"2016","journal-title":"Chin. J. Health Psychol."},{"key":"B13","volume-title":"A Study on Postgraduate Entrance Examination Anxiety and Its Influencing Factors Among Normal University Students","author":"Shen","year":"2006"},{"key":"B14","unstructured":"Why do candidates \u201cbecome braver with each attempt\u201d? A grounded theory study of students who \"land\" after multiple postgraduate entrance exams\n          \n          \n            \n              Tian\n              H. R.\n            \n            \n              Gong\n              H. Y.\n            \n          \n          Univ. Educ. Sci.\n          \n          2023"},{"key":"B15","volume-title":"Psychological Resilience and Stress Perception: The Moderating Role of Social Support","author":"Wang","year":"2018"},{"key":"B16","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"728","DOI":"10.1186\/s12912-024-02373-2","article-title":"Factors influencing nursing undergraduates' motivation for postgraduate entrance: a qualitative inquiry","volume":"23","author":"Wang","year":"2024","journal-title":"BMC Nurs."},{"key":"B17","volume-title":"A Study on the Preparation Experience for the Postgraduate Entrance Examination","author":"Xiong","year":"2021"},{"key":"B18","first-page":"5018","article-title":"A qualitative study on the postgraduate entrance examination experience of successful nursing undergraduates [J]","volume":"21","author":"Zhang","year":"2023","journal-title":"Chinese Gen. Nurs."},{"key":"B19","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.19633\/j.cnki.11-2579\/d.2023.0153","article-title":"Where is the shore? The construction of the \u201clanding\u201d trend of thought among contemporary youth and reflection on self-biographical practice","author":"Zhou","year":"2023","journal-title":"China Youth Stud."}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Psychology"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1801825\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]],"date-time":"2026-05-20T05:45:11Z","timestamp":1779255911000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1801825\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]]},"references-count":19,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1801825"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1801825","relation":{},"ISSN":["1664-1078"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1664-1078","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,20]]},"article-number":"1801825"}}