Graduates find it tougher in search for a job
Print Edition
This year’s job-hunting season in China is coming to an end, but Li Weibin has yet to find a satisfactory position.
“I have been looking for jobs for months in Beijing, but have had no luck because many companies only want people with experience,” said Li, a graduate from the China Youth University of Political Studies.
“Besides, there are fewer job positions this year,” the 22-year-old said.
Like Li, many Chinese graduates are in the midst of a “job-hunting crisis” as a record number of young people search for jobs amid a slowing economy.
China’s college graduates reached a record high of 7.49 million this year, up by 220,000 compared with 2014, according to the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.
Meanwhile, sagging economic growth means companies have lowered their demand for new recruits this year.
These factors have made this year’s job-hunting season, the time between April and June when new graduates begin their search for employment, one of the toughest in history.
Zhou Xiaodong, an official with Changzhou University in east China’s Jiangsu Province, said that though the number of companies looking for new recruits at universities has not decreased, the number of positions are generally down by 20 to 30 percent.
Chen Yongli, a recruitment official at Peking University, said: “Many big companies, particularly state-own enterprises, have basically slashed their demand for new recruits this year, with some even cutting demand by half.”
Company heads are also getting increasingly picky when looking for talent.
“They want people with experience or graduates from top universities,” said Li Liang, a journalism graduate from Hebei University in north China’s Hebei Province.
The 24-year-old said he had spent more than 10,000 yuan (US$1,610) on accommodation during job hunting over the past six months in Beijing, but so far “has not found a dream job.”
“I plan to go back home, because I feel like a loser here,” Li said.
While the tough environment is to blame, some college graduates are being too picky, said Guo Liqun, recruitment director with China Agricultural University.
“Many students have unreasonably high expectations for their jobs, contributing to this year’s grim job prospects.”
In late June, the State Council announced new policies to encourage migrant workers, college graduates and discharged soldiers to return to their hometowns and start their own small businesses.
The government has promised easy business registration. Employee social insurance will also be subsidized by the government for small and medium-sized enterprises that hire college graduates.
On Monday, the Department of Human Resources and Social Security in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region announced plans to retrain 5,000 unemployed graduates and assign them to work in various positions at offices in the region’s remote counties for up to a year.
Those who want to start their own businesses will enjoy favorable policies such as lower taxes and favorable loans.
In the southern metropolis of Shenzhen, authorities have issued 30 measures in a bid to support startups in the city.
These include the establishment of several “startup gardens” areas designated for new businesses where participants receive various subsidies.
Training sessions will also be provided for college graduates interested in entrepreneurship.
A website that profiles graduates and asks employers to bid to employ is expected to help boost graduate employment.
Hosted by Taobao, an online shopping website, the “Talent Shop” launched by Kunming University in Yunnan Province last week puts talent up for auction.
The site categorizes students according to their field. The profiles include the student’s ideal starting salary and the university’s assessment of him or her.
Sixty-five of Kunming University’s best job candidates are currently profiled.
The talent shop, the first such service on Taobao, is an attempt to promote new graduates to potential employers and “help them deal with the harsh employment conditions this year,” said Kunming University Principal He Hua.
From September, the site will also allow students to pitch business ideas for crowdfunding or auction, He said.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
