Society

Stressed graduates stay close to campus

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-05-04 16:01

BEIJING - Two years after graduation, jobless Zhang Junhui still shuttles between classrooms on campus. Only this time, it's at prestigious Peking University.

He gets up at 8:00 am to have breakfast in the school dinning hall; he starts his study in one of the spare classrooms 30 minutes later; he cycles back home at 10:30 pm. His routine is just as it was when he was an undergraduate.

"Being at a good university is stimulus for me to study hard. I've made friends with four native speakers and my oral English has been improving fast," said Zhang, who is also attracted to the low cost dining and medical facilities in campus.

He graduated with an engineering degree from Hebei University of Technology in northern China's Hebei Province in 2008 before starting his first job as a computer programmer on a monthly salary of 2,500 yuan. But after nine months he decided to move on and he quit.

"I didn't want to be one of the 'ant-tribe' and that's why I am sharing this poorly lit, 12-square-meter room with three roommates," he said.

He moved into the shabby apartment facing the west gate of Peking University in April 2009 and he has been preparing for the IELTS examination to study in Australia ever since. His dream is to work in Fortune 500 company after studying abroad.

The 'ant-tribe' term he used refers to the masses of lowly-paid recent graduates who hope to make a career in Beijing and are residing in slum-like colonies in Tangjialing, on the Beijing outskirts.

Typically, these 'ants' were born in the poor rural regions of China and they lack social connections.

"These graduates who continue with their studies, live near campus, don't work and rely on their parents are different from the 'ant-tribe,'" said Lian Si, a sociologist with Beijing's University of International Business and Economics (UIBE).

According to Lian's survey of 2,981 young people around university campuses in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Wuhan and Xi'an, 61.23 percent respondents are engaged in further study or are looking for jobs after having graduated from another college and 72.7 percent were from rural areas. Lian conducted the survey from June 2008 to January 2009.

"They hope for better employment prospects or a better life by extending their education," Lian said.

"A college degree, however, no longer makes one stand out in the job market, especially for graduates without an outstanding academic background like me," Zhang said.

A record 6.3 million college graduates will hit the Chinese job market this summer, the most since China's expansion of graduate recruitment in 1999, according to the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS). But the job market, even as it recovers, will be unable to absorb them all.

"I hope for a better start in life by improving my English and my professional knowledge. It is impossible to do this once I have a family. But I only give myself two years for this," Zhang said.

One of Zhang's roommates has even failed the postgraduate entrance examination six times.

"I appreciate the hardworking spirit of these young people," Peking University sociologist Xia Xueluan said. "But they can't indefinitely prolong the school-to-work transition for studying. If they prolong the transition for too long, it may cause management difficulties for the school. It may also undermine social stability as they get increasingly anxious and frustrated with age."

"Occupation certificates, relevant work and internship experience are all highly valued by employers, apart from a diploma from a leading university," Lian said.

"Instead of single-mindedly pursuing a master's degree, these young graduates should keep an eye on the job market to understand what employers expect," Lian suggested.

But Lian also criticized China's stiff, impractical education system that fails to mesh with labor market demand.

The government is making efforts to promote the independence and employability of these students.

Early last month, the MHRSS, the ministries of education and finance and Bank of China launched a set of preferential treatment policies to encourage graduates to work in rural areas and start businesses. The polices aim to ensure at least 70 percent of new graduates find jobs by July and 10 percent find work by the end of the year.

Internship opportunities and vocational training are also being increasingly highlighted in policy and reforms in college curriculum.

Young graduates are also being encouraged to serve in the People's Liberation Army (PLA). A one-off refund of up to 24,000 yuan (US$3,500) is granted to every graduate who becomes a soldier to help them pay their college tuition fees and student loans.

But campus is not the permanent harbor for most of these young people.

Lian's survey showed that only 8.4 percent of respondents still lived near a school campus five years after graduation. Some left for well-paid jobs while others moved to second-tier cities where the competition for jobs is not as fierce.

"If I can't make it this May, I will start looking for a job again," Zhang said.

"After all, I have to work my way up," he said.