International students find it difficult to find jobs when returning to China

(CLO) Despite possessing degrees from the world's top universities, many Chinese students returning home still face great challenges in finding jobs.

Factors such as increased competition in the labor market and changes in recruitment policies are creating major barriers for this group of students. In addition, they are also affected by the perception of the value of foreign degrees in the current political climate.

Some provinces are excluding graduates from universities outside China from the xuandiaosheng system, or “selected and assigned graduates,” a special recruitment program that selects outstanding students for government jobs.

In Guangdong province, the government issued a notice in December saying that graduates from foreign universities would not be eligible to take part in the 2025 civil service recruitment.

The rule applies to prestigious universities such as the Ivy League in the US, the University of Cambridge in the UK, and the National University of Singapore. This marks an important step in limiting the participation of students with foreign degrees in the civil service system.

Illustration: Unsplash

Similarly, Shandong Province also announced a new policy in October requiring 2025 applicants to be selected only from domestic universities. This not only affects students studying at international schools but also reflects a changing trend in recruitment policies, with the aim of upholding ideological values ​​and protecting national security.

In previous decades, sending elite students abroad to study was an important strategy to acquire advanced knowledge and technology to serve the country's modernization. Experts and leaders such as Wan Gang, who is considered the "father of China's electric vehicles", studied in Germany and made great contributions to the development of the industry upon returning to China.

However, in recent years, the value of international degrees has declined significantly. A report from recruitment company Liepin and the Chinese Global Youth Summit in 2023 showed that the average salary of foreign graduates fell from 268,200 yuan in 2020 to 204,500 yuan in the first half of 2023.

The survey found that the increase in domestic applicants has created fierce competition in the labor market, reducing career opportunities for international students.

The starting salaries of foreign graduates are also much lower than they expected. According to the survey, the starting salaries of these students are 23% to 34% lower than they expected. Another report found that the average salary of students with foreign university degrees is 7,928 yuan per month, about 2,700 yuan lower than they expected.

Still, Fan Xiudi, director of the Education Evaluation Research Center at Tongji University in Shanghai, stressed that the important role returned overseas students play in China's development should not be underestimated.

She said the country still lacks high-level talent with multicultural and global capabilities, which are crucial in the current context as China continues to expand its global influence and push forward with modernization.

Ngoc Anh (according to SCMP, China Daily)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/du-hoc-sinh-kho-tim-kiem-viec-lam-khi-tro-ve-trung-quoc-post329988.html