A growing minority of Chinese students skip the gaokao entirely and apply directly to universities abroad. This is neither easier nor harder than the gaokao — just different, and it must be planned much earlier.
Common destinations are the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, and Singapore, with each system requiring different combinations of standardized tests (SAT, ACT, IELTS, TOEFL), high school transcripts, and application essays.
The decision to skip the gaokao is usually made in tenth grade or earlier. Late switches — deciding in twelfth grade that you will apply abroad after all — often result in a rushed, weak application.
It is possible to sit the gaokao and apply abroad simultaneously, and some students do — this is expensive and stressful and works best when the family has been planning both tracks from the start.
Some universities in Hong Kong, Australia, and increasingly a handful in the UK and US will consider a strong gaokao score as part of an application. This creates a hybrid track worth investigating.