Just because the number of college graduates employed by the state has, necessarily, fallen in recent years this isn’t, necessarily, what many would have preferred.
In a follow up to the paper highlighted last week about where China’s happiest workers are found the paper this week, from Hongbin Li (et al.) of Stanford University, looks at where China’s college graduates prefer to seek employment, and the two papers dovetail nicely.
The researchers point out their work addresses association not causality. It’s a look at the ‘what’ therefore not the ‘why’ but usefully contributes some understanding to the youth unemployment puzzle that’s gotten a lot of press this summer.
Fact is, in this study, 64% of college graduates would like a job in the state sector, but only 42% actually managed to snare one. Of those who expressed a preference the hit rate was higher at 50% but that still leaves an awful lot of young people unable to get the job they wanted.
A hiring bias appears to be at work in addition. The state sector has a preference for candidates with the following characteristics:
- Male
- Urban hukou holders
- CCP Members
- Higher test scoring candidates
- Those from the more prestigious universities
- Those from high income/high status background
The researchers skate over the question as to whether this is a good or bad outcome i.e. should the state get the brightest if it’s to develop rapidly or would that talent be better off in the private sector?
What’s clear though is that with so many trying for a statistically improbable chance for success it’s not surprising the market ends up with a pool of underemployed talent.
Not an answer to the bigger question of total youth unemployment in China but clearly a piece of the puzzle. You can access the paper in full via this link Job Preferences and Outcomes for China’s College Graduates.
Happy Sunday.