Zhaopin, a Chinese career platform that connects users with job opportunities, conducted a 2017 career survey of college graduates in China, revealing notable trends. The survey indicated that graduates faced a more challenging job market and lower average salaries, presenting a difficult situation for the 7.95 million graduates entering the workforce.

2017 Labor Market for College Graduates

• Difficult and very challenging: 40.8%
• Difficult, but acceptable: 47.0%
• The market was OK: 9.4%
• Not difficult at all: 0.8%
• Not clear: 2.0%

While there are positive signs of improvement in the overall labor market due to a strengthening economy, as shown by the CIER index (a metric tracking job vacancies versus job seekers), the job market recovery is uneven. The large number of graduates this year creates significant competition, especially for those from less prestigious universities.

The survey found that 41.3% of graduates sent out 11 to 30 resumes, and 11.7% submitted over 51 resumes. Securing interviews proved challenging, with 31.9% of graduates attending one to three interviews and 27.1% attending four to five. Notably, 8.3% didn’t receive any interview requests, a significant increase from the previous year’s 3%.

By April’s end, 27.7% of graduates remained jobless, exceeding the previous year’s rate of 24.8%. Additionally, only 50.2% obtained one to three job offers, down from 55.4% the previous year. Graduates who declined job offers cited reasons such as unsatisfactory salary and benefits (35.5%), unappealing positions or work (32.4%), and undesirable work locations (27.7%). To help graduates navigate these challenges, Zhaopin created the National Employability Test to assist both graduates and employers in finding suitable matches.

Job Offers for College Graduates

• No offer: 27.7%
• One offer: 15.5%
• Two offers: 18.9%
• Three offers: 15.8%
• Four offers: 9.1%
• Five offers: 6.0%
• Six offers: 4.9%
• Seven or more offers: 2.0%

Highlights of Zhaopin’s research:

• The job market was perceived as “very challenging” by 40.8% of graduates, an increase from 36.5% the previous year. An additional 47% found the job market difficult but manageable.
• Only 26.7% of graduates signed employment contracts, a significant decrease from the previous year’s 35.4%.
• The average expected monthly salary for graduates decreased by 16% to RMB4,014.
• Male graduates earned an average monthly salary of RMB4,374, exceeding the female graduates’ average of RMB3,624.
• The IT/telecom/electronics/Internet sector provided the highest average monthly salary at RMB4,867. The financial sector followed with RMB4,692, and the traffic/transportation/logistics/warehousing sector offered RMB4,457.
• For the first time since the survey’s inception in 2014, “opportunities to learn and grow” surpassed “good salary and welfare” as the most important factor for graduates evaluating job opportunities.

Reasons for Not Accepting Job Offers

• Salary/welfare did not meet expectation: 35.5%
• Did not like position/work: 32.4%
• Not satisfied with work location: 27.7%
• Waiting for better offers: 22.2%
• Poor outlook for career development: 21.2%
• Work environment did not meet expectation: 19.6%
• Poor industry outlook: 11.1%
• Choosing among multiple offers: 10.1%
• Company reputation did not meet expectation : 6.7%
• Ready to sign contract : 6.4%
• Startup company with high risk: 5.7%

Zhaopin’s survey revealed a decline in both expected and actual average monthly salaries for graduates. This year, the average expected salary was RMB4,875, down RMB110 from the previous year. The actual average monthly salary experienced a more significant drop of RMB751, reaching RMB4,014.

Average Monthly Salary for College Graduates

The IT/telecom/electronics/internet sector emerged as the highest-paying sector, with an average monthly salary of RMB4,867. The financial sector followed closely at RMB4,692, while the traffic/transportation/logistics/warehousing sector offered RMB4,457.

Sectors with Highest Average Monthly Salaries for College Graduates (RMB)

• IT/telecom/electronics/Internet: 4,867
• Financial: 4,692
• Traffic/transportation/logistics/warehousing: 4,457

Among graduates who signed employment contracts, 33.5% opted for first-tier cities, and 33.1% chose emerging first-tier cities. Notably, emerging first-tier cities were more appealing, with 37.5% of graduates expressing a preference for working in these locations.

Cities Selected by College Graduates

The IT/telecom/electronics/Internet sector was the most sought-after field, attracting 19.4% of graduates, with 20.3% successfully finding jobs in this industry.

Sectors Selected by Chinese College Graduates

The survey indicated a decrease in the number of students pursuing further education. This year, only 6.3% planned to pursue further education in China, compared to 16.5% the previous year. Similarly, only 3.4% intended to study abroad, down from 4.8% the previous year. Interestingly, almost 10% of graduates chose not to work immediately after graduation, opting instead to travel, volunteer, or spend time with family.

Intentions After Graduation

• Looking for a job: 73.5%
• Further education in China: 6.3%
• Further education overseas : 3.4%
• Start own business: 6.3%
• Take some time off: 9.8%
• Others: 0.7%

“Opportunities to learn and grow” were prioritized by 55.9% of graduates, while 52.2% prioritized “good salary and welfare.” This marked a significant shift, with “opportunities to learn and grow” surpassing “good salary and welfare” as the top priority for job seekers for the first time since the survey’s inception in 2014.

Job Aspirations for Chinese College Graduates

• Opportunities to learn and grow: 55.9%
• Good salary and welfare: 52.2%
• Growth potential of industry/company: 34.9%
• Harmonious company environment: 25.2%
• Fit with personal interests: 22.8%
• Room to perform with abilities: 20.5%
• Suitable position: 19.1%
• Clear career development path: 17.8%
• Balance of work and life: 16.2%
• Freedom in workstyle: 13.5%
• Others: 0.3%

The survey revealed that graduates were willing to work overtime for urgent tasks, personal work completion, or skill development. 40.3% were willing to work two to five extra hours per week, and 23.1% could accommodate five to eight hours.

Acceptable Amount of Overtime for Chinese College Graduates

• Under two hours a week: 24.5%
• Two to five hours a week: 40.3%
• Five to eight hours a week: 23.1%
• Eight to 10 hours a week: 8.6%
• No overtime: 3.5%

Zhaopin boasts over 135 million registered users at different career stages. In the fiscal year ending June 30, 2016, 509,813 unique customers posted approximately 36.9 million job postings on the platform.

* Zhaopin’s survey examines the employability of college graduates based on their perspectives on the labor market, job search activities, and outcomes. This year, approximately 93,420 college graduates, including those from junior colleges, undergraduate programs, and graduate programs, participated in the survey.

** A “unique customer” represents a customer who purchased the company’s online recruitment services within a given timeframe. Zhaopin adjusts for duplicate purchases made by the same customer to avoid overcounting. Each customer is assigned a unique identification number within the company’s information management system. In certain cases, affiliates and branches of a particular customer might be considered distinct unique customers.

*** Zhaopin determines the number of job postings by tallying the number of new job postings made during each respective period. Job postings published before a specific period, even if still active during that period, are not included in the count for that specific period. A single job posting on the company’s website might encompass multiple job openings or positions.