Graduates eye other options as jobs dry up
Source: Xinhua |
June 26, 2013, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
HAVING sent out more than 110 job applications but getting no more than 10 interviews, chemistry graduate Yi Feng gave up on the idea of landing a decent job. He had traveled around many major Chinese cities trying his luck for four months.
Yi, who graduates from Jiangxi Normal University in east China's Jiangxi Province this month, decided to join the army to avoid what seems to be the country's most toughest job market in a decade. He will wait for opportunities in two or three years time.
The 22-year-old said serving in the army is very appealing, adding he will get a fair allowance and enjoy favorable policies when pursuing a graduate degree or a post in the civil service later on. "Joining the army is not a bad option for me. It has relieved my stress to find a job and will probably make me more competitive," Yi said.
Although the job market in China is still much better than many other parts of the world, it is still tough for graduates. Many job seekers have decided to shy away from the rat race and try other options.
A record-high 6.99 million students will leave universities in 2013, a 2.8 percent increase year on year, to hunt for jobs at a time when employers are cutting down on recruitment, government figures show.
The number of jobs for new hires this year has fallen about 15 percent year on year amid slowing economic growth, according to a Ministry of Education survey carried out among nearly 500 firms in February.
"The shrinking job market is the result of the sluggish world economy and tempered domestic growth," said Yang Lin, director of the career guidance center of Beijing Technology and Business University.
New posts in many large state-owned enterprises have declined dramatically this year following economic reforms or restructuring, Yang added.
Out of 178,000 college graduates in Shanghai, 44.5 percent had signed up for employment as of May 10, while the figure for Beijing was only 33.6 percent at the beginning of May, according to government figures.
The grave employment situation is a big concern for China's leadership. President Xi Jinping talked with college graduate representatives during his visit to a vocational training center in Tianjin in May, urging efforts to help graduates find jobs.
The central government outlined measures to help college graduates with jobs, including implementation of existing policies favorable to graduates' employment, providing training subsidies, petty loans and tax breaks for self-employment.
Yi, who graduates from Jiangxi Normal University in east China's Jiangxi Province this month, decided to join the army to avoid what seems to be the country's most toughest job market in a decade. He will wait for opportunities in two or three years time.
The 22-year-old said serving in the army is very appealing, adding he will get a fair allowance and enjoy favorable policies when pursuing a graduate degree or a post in the civil service later on. "Joining the army is not a bad option for me. It has relieved my stress to find a job and will probably make me more competitive," Yi said.
Although the job market in China is still much better than many other parts of the world, it is still tough for graduates. Many job seekers have decided to shy away from the rat race and try other options.
A record-high 6.99 million students will leave universities in 2013, a 2.8 percent increase year on year, to hunt for jobs at a time when employers are cutting down on recruitment, government figures show.
The number of jobs for new hires this year has fallen about 15 percent year on year amid slowing economic growth, according to a Ministry of Education survey carried out among nearly 500 firms in February.
"The shrinking job market is the result of the sluggish world economy and tempered domestic growth," said Yang Lin, director of the career guidance center of Beijing Technology and Business University.
New posts in many large state-owned enterprises have declined dramatically this year following economic reforms or restructuring, Yang added.
Out of 178,000 college graduates in Shanghai, 44.5 percent had signed up for employment as of May 10, while the figure for Beijing was only 33.6 percent at the beginning of May, according to government figures.
The grave employment situation is a big concern for China's leadership. President Xi Jinping talked with college graduate representatives during his visit to a vocational training center in Tianjin in May, urging efforts to help graduates find jobs.
The central government outlined measures to help college graduates with jobs, including implementation of existing policies favorable to graduates' employment, providing training subsidies, petty loans and tax breaks for self-employment.
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