Back to Basics

by Lin Yuan

Along with the summer heat wave comes Chinas annual graduation season， a time when focus tends to turn to the employment situation for new graduates. According to the latest statistics released by Chinas Ministry of Education， university graduates reached nearly 7 mil-lion this year， about 200，000 more than last year – Chinas largest class of university graduates ever. However， due to the nations slowing economic growth， the massive group is facing an employment market which is down 15 percent from last year.

The under-employment situation， caused by a human resource imbalance， is most glaring in Beijing， where 229，000 graduating seniors are receiving diplomas this year. As of the end of April， less than 30 percent of them had signed employment contracts， and many accepted an extremely low salary just to get anything. A recent survey revealed that the average expected monthly salary for new graduates dropped to 3，683.6 yuan （US$614）， down by a startling 2，000 yuan （$333） compared to 2011.

Stunned by the current disappointing employment data， university graduates and their parents， who certainly recall how much family pride and employment demand a diploma inspired in the 1980s， cant help but blame the expansion of university enrollment since 2003. In the last decade， university graduate employment has been a debated social issue every year. Today， even though a bachelors degree no longer guarantees a position or decent salary， the majority of students and their parents still see no option other than crowding onto the“university bridge” with everyone else.

As more and more university graduates experience the awkward situation of unemployment after graduation， a shortage of skilled workers is simultaneously becoming more prominent. The Wuhan Railway and Bridge Technician School （WRBTS） in Wuhan， Hubei Province， recently announced that they were relaunching their“class for university graduates，” which had been suspended for the past two years， and admitting 100 university graduates.

“After we released our recruiting notice， it became routine for us to pick up the phone dozens of times a day to provide information about the program，” said Li Shutao， vice-principle of WRBTS. “For many enterprises， skilled workers with a comprehensive knowledge and strong learning capabilities are the most needed. Compared to ordinary technicians without a university background， trained university graduates do have an advantage in their ability to satisfy employers requirements quickly.”

The idea of “training university graduates to become skilled workers” was introduced by WRBTS in 2009， and the first group of 56 university graduates and their 54 successors in 2010 were overwhelmed by negative social feedback for years – until graduates from this school began being considered the technical backbone of their respective enterprises. Most earn 4，000 yuan （about $655） a month， and some bring in as much as 6，000 yuan （about $1，000）.

Clearly， such opportunity is a welcome alternative for graduates overwhelmed by the employment landscape， but resources involved in “returning to school” are wasted to some degree for both the graduates and educational institutions. The predicament could be avoided if high school students and their parents made reasonable choices in disciplines based on studentsstrengths and interests before even taking the college entrance examination.

“For students with strong management skills and those interested in research and innovation， university is a good place to pursue advanced studies，” explained Liu Xiaohui， president of Dalian Technician College in Liaoning Province. “However， for those with strong hands-on ability， various vocational schools may offer them better opportunity.”

As the former prestige of a university degree fades along with graduateshopes of landing a dream job， employers are becoming more desperate for skilled technicians rather than Ph.D.s. The attractiveness of universities compared to vocational schools is becoming a relic of the past.