A proctor announces rules for the examinees before the postgraduate admission exam at an examination site in the Beijing Foreign Studies University in Beijing, capital of China, Dec 24, 2022. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

The number of applicants for China's postgraduate studies entrance exam has fallen by 7.6 percent, the first drop in nine years, figures from the Ministry of Education show.

In a circular highlighting security measures taken ahead of the exam, which will be held from Dec 23 to 25, it said 4.38 million applicants had registered. The number last year was 4.74 million.

ALSO READ: China to recruit 39,600 civil servants in annual intake

The number of applicants for the exam had been increasing steadily since 2016, with an average growth rate of 15.8 percent a year from 2015 to 2022.