China's college graduates to exceed two million in 2003
( 2002-03-27 10:58 ) (8 )

The number of college and university graduates in China will hit a record high of 2.12 million in 2003 and will rise to 2.5 million in 2004, sources with the Ministry of Education (MOE) said Tuesday.

Qu Zhenyuan, director of the MOE Student Department, said the number of graduates had grown rapidly since China increased college enrollment rate in 1999.

In 2001, college and university graduates totaled 1.15 million, and the employment rates for undergraduates, graduates and technical school students were 80 percent, 90 percent and 40 percent respectively.

Statistics show that the number of graduates is 1.45 million this year, including 727,000 technical school graduates, and the figure is 39.8 percent higher than last year.

As this year is a key stage for college graduates' job-hunting, the government is now establishing a market-oriented and government-supervised employment system.

Qu said there was still a strong market demand for graduates in China, especially in the country's western areas and some local enterprises. The government has been encouraging graduates to work in rural areas and small enterprises, offering favorable policies for students.

It is vital for the government to work out policies to encourage the flow of talented personnel and change the views of graduates on employment, experts say.