Chinese Lives

A newest policy says that from 2008, China will select 100,000 Uni graduates to work in rural China, which to some extent will ease tightening pressure that huge number university graduates put on city job markets each year.

Though rural origin graduates are not put in a must-apply situation, this policy do help them to find a secure social servant job and erase their uni loans, if they agree to serve three years.

No one wants to go in rural China. Not even students from countryside. Most parents expect children to work in Beijing state government in their best wish; if not available, they want university, bank, big state-owned corporations, or foreign companies. Certainly, working with farmers, is the last thing in parents’ plans. That is a reality that delays rural economy.

With too many university graduates, and too few city job vacancies, directing job seeker to rural China, couldn’t be a very bad idea. When more university graduates fit in, they will want to claim more rights and benefits on things such as less education fee, nationwide medical insurance, pension scheme if necessary etc.

I personall think thumb up of this policy. Because rural China’s benefit become a part of our business, when a lot of gradates have to live it for 3 years or probably longer. People in rural China are not ignored any more if this project goes well.

Only 3 months into 2008, already two young promising graduates commit suicide who only worked for less than 6 months with each employers.

The dead girl, named Zhang Wei, was a teacher in charge of student activities in Zhong Shan University. She moaned to her friend about too much work and compulsory socialising made her lack of sleep and felt bad as hell. When a senior upper rank colleague recommend himself to be her boyfriend, it was the last straw.

It could be a scandal concerning the upper male colleague if the victim was a tougher girl. But sadly, Zhang Wei was too timid, shy, not knowing when to say no. You can say she is a loser despite her eminent academic qualification.

The dead man worked in IT for Huawei, the best though cruelest ever expanding telecommunication solution provider company. He had triple times higher pay than the average city dweller, but the wolf company culture that lacked in care and love, corner him to the edge.

Why the strawberry generation, a name for born- in -1980s give up to difficulties that easy? I am afraid much blames have to fall on the born-in-80s, who have very high expectations about what their future should be but less competent at negotiating and getting on with people. Sadly, some choose suicide when finding out what real world is.

Only being whipped, tossed and ground by life, you can exist like a pebble in a sea, a river or just a pond.

University graduates not only stand still for photo shooting at graduation ceremony, but have more weird funny ideas of photo posing.

Below is a hot discussion on present university graduate’s role change. A univerity graduate working as a shop assistant, whether it is a waste of talent?
http://www.tianya.cn/new/publicforum/Content.asp?
strItem=no20&idArticle=132063

“He graduated from a national top-100 prestigious university. Living in an expensive city of Shen Zhen, he still stuggled to make the ends meet. 3 jobs within the past 2 years, his salary remained the bottom 1500-2000RMB monthly, which was impossible to pay off debts his family owed for his 4-year university expense.

His present job in an optical shop required no higher than a GCSE equivalent in China, he was perplexed as for whether he wasted huge money and time on completing the university degree.”

Opinions from the forum：

Voice 1: Being a sales assistant is a waste of talent. If he does have ambitions, why not wait for next opportunity, because long time manual work will stop him going up the ladder, given that he would be too exhausted to look for other jobs.

Voice 2: University degree does not mean ability. Many responders argue that job positions are decided by ability not degree. If you graduated with no brains, or you are not capable to show your brains, basic manual jobs are what you deserve.

Voice 3: Many responders cheer him up, asking him to regard this as an experience only. If he is strong enough, he will realize his dreams. They believe that university degree’s value will show in how he succeeds his job, rather than what his job is.

Voice 4: Some university students show worries for themselves. Under such intense job situation, those without a prestigious university degree, may find no job at all.

Analysis

In the end of 1970s, China recovered it higher education system, by recruiting talents through examination, which continues today. This exam lasts 3 days, which was on 7th, 8thand 9th of July, but moved a month earlier in 2003.

This exam is expected by millions family as a key to enter their children’s bright future. If any child succeeds entering, their whole family, including extensive family relatives, will feel as a family honor and pride. It is enrooted from the ancient time, when emperor chose talents from all over the country as his students. The people chosen became “guan”, meaning superior than grassroots, functions as the nowadays civil servants.

University students were the best of all competitors, and they did not need to look for job, because the government took care of them from the day they won the competition. Therefore, university students were wearing an invisible crown to most people.

However things changed quickly. Since 1996, limits were lifted to let in more university students. After that, in one decade’s time, a bad circle of more graduates, higher tuition fees and fewer jobs took its form. Meanwhile, number of college education for skilled workers were dwindling.

University entry examination should be but do not function well as diverting different talents to each suitable place. Many those who pay huge extras expect a well-paid and easy job, such as civil servants or engineers in big national owned corporations. So, the market is in a more applicant, less job offers situation; too many applications for national owned office job, while in many regions, highly skilled manual workers are desperately needed.

Like the fellow in this story, many university graduates only expect gain without thinking about painstaking efforts. After all, crown-wearing university students’ golden time passed. They should reassess the society, and starts some real work. As in Mao’s time, students were encouraged to join farmers working in the field, and studying from a master in factories. I don’t mean Mao’s time has no problem. But students then were more spiritually fulfilled as well as physically capable than most students now.