November is typically "hunting season" for enterprises looking
to recruit university graduates, with many companies giving career
talks in colleges and putting posters up around campuses. The year
2006 will be no different with an estimated 7.5 million graduates
expected to battle for a place on the workforce.
Recent employment trends
Several surveys conducted by the country's leading newspapers
might be a good indication of current employment trends. The
following are some of the key findings of these surveys.
?Work over Masters degree
A survey conducted and published by People's Daily showed
that most graduates would rather join the workforce than pursue a
postgraduate qualification. The survey focused on the employment
hopes and aspirations of university graduates in Beijing. About 67
percent of undergraduates surveyed said they would work after
graduation, compared with 16 percent who would pursue a
postgraduate qualification. Only 5.3 percent said they would
continue their studies abroad.
National statistics show that 208,000 people enrolled for
Masters entrance examinations in 2005, representing a rise of 21.6
percent over 2004 and three times that in 2000.
The results of this survey seem to indicate a downward trend.
However, Ren Zhanzhong, head of the Employment Guidance Center for
University Graduates, Beijing Municipal Education Commission (BMCE), thinks these survey
results do not necessarily reflect the latest employment trends. He
said that much depends on actual figures for Masters exam
registration in 2006.
?Employment pressures
It is estimated that in 2006, about 3.5 million university
graduates, and 4 million technical, vocational and skills-training
graduates will join the workforce. This would mean increased
pressures on the government to find them jobs.
The BMCE recently released the 2005 figures for employment rate
of?Beijing's university graduates.?On July 7, the initial
take-up rate was 89.3 percent. Quite a number of the remaining
would rather wait for more appropriate opportunities than to take
the first job that comes along.
?Aiming for the big cities
A majority of students want jobs in big cities. Another survey
reported by the Beijing Morning Post showed that 63.6
percent of students choose to work in Beijing, Shanghai and other
big cities. Only 7.3 percent said they would consider working in
central and western parts of China.
Jia Huaiyi, head of the Enrollment?and Employment
Department at Beijing Jiaotong University said that big cities
offer more opportunities for personal development, but its
employment capacity is limited, and competition is keen. A graduate
should be aware of this when making his decision.
?Government departments the top choice
The Beijing Morning Post survey also shows that of the
7,419 people surveyed, 37.6 percent hope to find employment with
government departments. Private, foreign and big-size state
enterprises ranked second, third and fourth respectively. Only 7.4
percent of the students surveyed said they would start their own
businesses.
The findings indicate that many graduates might be disappointed
as far as securing a job is concerned. In Beijing alone, there will
be an estimated 180,000 graduates next year looking for work.
Central government departments need only 10,000 people, and the
Beijing municipal government needs only a few thousand.
?What job?
The survey also shows that 48.7 percent of those surveyed
believe that their majors have little to do with looking for a job;
34 percent think potential employers pay more attention to a
person's overall skills and qualities than a college major.
?No high expectations for monthly wages
An online study undertaken by Beijing Morning Post
revealed that of the 2,679 university students surveyed, 1,112 of
them expected starting salaries of between 2,000 yuan (US$247) and
2,999 yuan (US$371); 929 said between 1,000 yuan (US$124) and 1,999
yuan (US$247); 61 said less than 1,000 yuan. Only 577 (or about 20
percent) said they expected more than 3,000 yuan a month.
An undergraduate surnamed Luo from Renmin University of
China?said she wants a monthly salary of between 2,000 yuan
and 3,000 yuan. "I think this is a realistic expectation given the
competition for jobs," Luo said.
Recruitment drives
The Ministry
of Education set November 20 as the day for enterprises to
visit universities on their recruitment drives. But many companies
started their recruitment drives much earlier, whether through the
Internet or campus advertising.
Companies such as Microsoft, Baidu and Lenovo and others that
are willing to go the extra mile to hire the cream of China's
university crop have posted advertisements on the websites of
Shanghai's Fudan
University and Jiaotong University.
They've also held online recruitment conferences.
To make things a little easier…
?Group referrals
Schools are planning on making group referrals or
recommendations directly to companies. A total of 180 universities
will make available the information relating to 300,000
graduates.
?Work placements
Some universities are planning to cooperate with companies to
set up training bases on campus to prepare students for future
employment with the companies. Excellent students might even have a
chance at securing a job before graduation.
(China.org.cn by Zhou Jing, November 7, 2005)