Recruiting in China

About 7 million students are graduating from China's colleges this year, marking the hardest job-hunting season in the country's history. However, widespread employment discrimination in the job market has made the situation even tougher for China's youth.

CRI's Zhou Jingnan finds out more.

A fresh graduate of Guangdong University of Finance surnamed Ge, complains about discrimination as employers raise their requirements based on academic background of applicants, such as their degree and alma mater.

"I attended a job fair recently. Most of the employers there told me they only recruit students graduating from about 110 top-notch universities from the country's Project 985 and 211. I was so depressed because I believe I am just as able."

Project 985 and Project 211, similar to Ivy League universities in the US, was launched by the Chinese government to promote the country's higher education. However, it has been often used by those companies hiring as a reference when it comes to recruiting.

Macroeconomic researcher Liu Xiao, from the consultancy firm Anbound analyzes the phenomena.

"The supply of job-hunters has exceeded the demand of the job market among university students in recent years. Thus, whether a graduate comes from an elite university or not, it is natural for enterprises to select potential employees from a large number of applicants."

Some experts think that the discriminatory recruitment practices infringe upon the rights and interests of ordinary college graduates. It is also believed that such discrimination might cause students to shy away from the job market and instead pursue higher education rather than attempt to promote their ability and efficiency through employment.

Liang Chen, a junior college graduate, talks about why he chose to pursue a higher degree from China University of Petroleum.

"Nowadays, it is impossible for me to find a job with a junior degree. I believe there's a larger chance of success to land a decent job with an undergraduate degree."

In order to make the job market fairer, the Ministry of Education recently issued directives banning recruitment advertisements with discriminatory requirements.

Researcher Liu Xiao suggests ways to eliminate discriminatory employment practices in the long run.

"The spontaneous regulation of the job market is the most effective way. Employers will change their prejudices against lower-educated students when they realize that degrees and gender have nothing to do with a graduate's capability and efficiency."

Liu suggests that graduates lower their expectations for the first job. Individuals are more likely to land a decent job after gaining rich work experience and becoming an expert within a certain industry.

For CRI, this is Zhou Jingnan.