The Professional Development of Gifted Students in Mathematics: A Follow-Up Study of the Winners of Mathematics Competitions
Peijie Jiang 1 * , Wenqian Lin 1
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1 School of Mathematics and Statistics, Hunan Normal University, China* Corresponding Author

Abstract

Mathematics competition winners are key subjects in research on mathematically gifted education. This study examined the career trajectories, academic achievements, and personal traits of 116 high school mathematics competition winners (graduating from 2008 to 2015) through the longitudinal questionnaire analysis. The key findings are as follows: (1) career clustering in STEM fields (technology, academia, finance) and advanced degree pursuits (81 participants); (2) high academic productivity, with 43 participants publishing as first authors and 13 holding patents; (3) income polarization (22.4% earning >¥40,000 vs. 12.1% earning <¥5,000 monthly); (4) elevated perfectionism (95.6%) and creativity (96.6%) in self-assessments; and (5) perceived benefits of competition experiences, including enhanced learning skills (87.9%) and academic growth (76.7%). The results highlight the strong correlation between mathematical talent and STEM-oriented careers, exceptional scholarly output, and the enduring impact of personal traits (e.g., perfectionism) and environmental factors on professional success. This work offers empirical insights into cultivating mathematically gifted individuals and assessing the long-term effectiveness of competition-based education.

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

International Journal of Changes in Education, Volume 3, Issue 3, 2026, 387-395

https://doi.org/10.47852/bonviewIJCE52025942

Publication date: 12 Aug 2026

Online publication date: 01 Sep 2025

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