Over the past decade, the proportion of graduates from upper secondary vocational schools who have progressed to higher education (HE) has increased significantly in China (Shandong Provincial Department of Education, 2024). One of the core goals of China’s development of VET is to promote social mobility (Zhang et al., 2020). As in many countries (Eini et al., 2023), students in China’s vocational schools are generally from disadvantaged groups, with more than 70% coming from rural and urban poor families (Ministry of Education, 2024a; Gao, 2015). With the opening of multiple pathways to HE, China's vocational schools may no longer be "broken ladder" that cannot provide opportunities for upward mobility (Xiong, 2015), but "elevator" that almost automatically deliver HE opportunities. In this context the study asks why vocational schools that used to focus on employment shift to emphasizing further education and how vocational schools help students progress to HE. Employing organizational sociology, particularly resource dependence theory and new institutionalism the study explores the attitudes and actions of Chinese vocational schools toward students’ expectations for HE and it aims at explaining the social dynamics that shape organizational behaviour. A multiple case study of three public secondary specialized schools in Shandong was conducted in 2024 to provide an in‐depth examination of the under‐researched role vocational schools play in HE progression. Through thematic analysis of semi‐structured interviews with thirteen organizational members, along with policy documents and administrative data the findings reveal that vocational schools have actively promoted the “HE progression” trend. This role serves not only as a strategy for organizational survival—addressing challenges related to resource dependence and the pressure of institutional isomorphism—but also as a means of establishing organizational legitimacy. To improve HE admission rates, the schools in our case studies have implemented similar efficiency mechanisms in response to environmental pressures. These include enhancing the delivery of integrated‐education programs with symbolic quality control during the transfer process, adopting classification‐based student management systems that differ in form but are similar in substance, and establishing systems characterized by strong “examination‐oriented” features. Given that vocational students are usually a ‘hidden disadvantaged’ group transitioning from VET institutions to HE institutions (Brunken & Delly, 2011), the improvement of HE opportunities cannot be separated from the government's active regulation. Countries that are determined to improve vocational students’ college access may learn from China, adopt strong policy measures to broaden the pathways to HE, and support vocational schools’ HE preparation.

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