Beijing takes measures to help graduates secure employment

Governments, universities and employers are working to help this year's graduates find jobs in the face of a challenging market.

Beijing has recently enacted 15 measures to secure employment, including providing more jobs and subsidies, in an attempt to ease the pressure on the job market.

Shi Xueying, a graduate of Beijing City University, said that she is feeling a great deal of pressure as she looks for a job.

"I have sent my resume to many companies online but have only received a few replies," she told China Daily at a job fair in Beijing. "I submitted resumes to four companies at the fair, but there has not been much positive feedback yet."

There will be 285,000 college graduates in Beijing this year, 17,000 more than last year, according to the capital's statistics bureau.

Bian Jing, spokesperson for the bureau, said during a news conference that Beijing's economy is growing, which will help widen the job market. Around 6,000 employers will offer 100,000 jobs during graduate job-hunting season, which will ease the pressure to an extent.

The 15 new measures include providing subsidies to companies to recruit graduates and encouraging financial institutions to increase loans to small and micro enterprises in order to secure employment. The government will also subsidize graduates having difficulty starting up their own businesses, and rollover is permitted.

The city's Fengtai district has launched an online platform to connect graduates and employers in the district. It also offers graduates employment consulting services and apartment rental information.

Liu Xiaojie, deputy head of the recruitment and employment office at the University of Science and Technology Beijing, said that the job market for graduates has gradually been recovering since spring, although the number of top-level positions is growing slowly.

According to Liu, more than 60 percent of USTB graduates found jobs in the world's Top 500 companies, or at other leading companies in China.

"We have set up internship programs with several steel industrial giants, including China Baowu Steel Group, to help students start job planning in advance," he said. "The university also created a job hunting database and offers graduates help when needed."

Beihang University enacted a new measure this year called "smart map", which integrates information about industrial sectors, talent requirements, classmates and companies in different areas of the country. It allows graduates to quickly find the information they need to find jobs in specific areas.

Since 2021, Beihang has been offering one-on-one job-hunting consultations for students who can make appointments with experts from companies via the university's platform.

According to Beihang, the employment situation this year is much the same as it was last year.

Chen Xiyu, a human resources officer at a heating company in Beijing, said that she is satisfied with graduate applicants this year, adding that they are more resilient as a result of studying during the pandemic.

"Most graduates want a stable job rather than a high salary, and are willing to start at the entry level," she added.

However, an HR officer at a food company in Beijing who declined to give their name, said that even though they have received 66 resumes from a single job fair, the candidates have not proved to be a match.

"This year's graduates spent most of their college years at school due to the pandemic," the officer said. "They lack internship experience and communication skills. So we are forced to focus more on their character during the selection process."