The most promising game player applicants spend a couple of days working in the company office in Shanghai; they get hands-on experience through team activities, exchanges with professionals in different fields and meet with recruiters.

"Now I know more about myself and what my future could be within a global business," Dong says.

She and other students support each other, helping revise their resumes, conduct mock interviews and share experience.

"The friendship makes me feel that I am not fighting alone."

Andy Lu, talent acquisition manager of L'Oreal Human Resources China, says the post-1990s generation is the best-educated generation yet, having all kinds of information "at their fingertips."

"This generation has technology in their blood and knows how to use technology to find what they want much faster than other generations."

He calls them "multi-taskers," saying it's not unusual to see a young person talking on their mobile, listening to their iPod and surfing the Internet at the same time. "Doing all this at once would be overwhelming for all previous generations."

Lu says the "Reveal" game is an online pre-selection tool catering to this generation and attracting all types of players, including "passive candidates."

Another similar case is Deloitte professional services. The game "IamDeloitte" offers an online "career cocktail bar" that matches students' qualifications with Deloittee positions. After answering three questions, each player receives an evaluation in terms of a specific beverage - from beer to fancy cocktails and Champagne, or maybe just juice.

"Well-known enterprises always use campus recruitment to raise their popularity among students," says Fudan teacher Cai Xiancong, who specializes in employment issues.

"Nowadays, they not only start earlier and earlier to compete for college talents, but also think of more creative ways to project a positive company image to students," Cai says.

Cai says the catchy online business recruitment sites are useful but might snare exceptionally talented people before they graduate next June.

"Generally, most students hang on to one solid offer while continuing to search for better jobs," he says. "It's not early promotion that is most effective, but targeting the best candidates through precise positioning."

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