Summary

Chinese international study agent EIC has recently published a report on the employability of Chinese graduates who have returned after studying overseas in conjunction with two recruitment websites, based on surveys of both employers and returnees. The UK was the most common country of study among student respondents and many of the findings from this research could help UK universities to understand the situation that their graduates will find themselves in when they return to China.

The report's findings are generally positive in terms of overall employability: 79 per cent said that they were able to find a job within three months of returning, up slightly compared to previous research EIC conducted in 2017, while 95 per cent had found a job six months after returning.

Almost half of these respondents said that their starting salary was at least RMB 10,000 (£1,100) per month - substantially higher than the average for local graduates. The survey also showed that returnees' salaries grow quickly in the first few years after coming back to China: the proportion earning at least RMB 20,000 (£2,200) per month was 4 per cent immediately after returning, 7 per cent among respondents who graduated within the last three years, 13 per cent among those that graduated 3-5 years ago and 29 per cent among returnees who graduated at least five years ago.

Beyond salary, the report also discusses the reasons graduates returned to China. The most popular reasons are all "pull factors", including family and friends in China, a more attractive economic environment, relationships with potential employers and a preference for Chinese culture. Far fewer respondents said they only came back because of strict overseas immigration policies (18 per cent) or difficulty finding work abroad (11 per cent).

The report also contained a regional analysis discussing where graduates came to work in China. As with previous research, the report found that Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong are the most popular regions, followed by Jiangsu, Shandong and Fujian provinces. However, overall trends mask a strong link to graduates' place of origin - not just among people from Beijing and Shanghai, but also among those from provincial cities. The report finds that 70 per cent of students from Jiangsu eventually return to their home province, as do 54 per cent of those from Shandong.

Alongside the returnee survey, EIC also surveyed employers to find their opinions of and policies towards returning overseas graduates. When asked about the advantages and disadvantages of returnees, employers felt that they had a substantial advantage in foreign language ability, problem-solving, independent thinking and innovation, but rated them as worse than local graduates in endurance, execution ability, loyalty, and to a lesser extent subject expertise. Most said that they would pay returnees the same as local graduates or that pay depended on individual abilities, but 26 per cent said they had a policy of paying higher salaries to returnees with overseas degrees.

Other findings from the report included:

* Returnees tend to switch jobs frequently - less than half of respondents were still in their first job, falling to around a third among those that graduated 3-5 years ago.

* Almost half of returnees said that they had started looking for a job before graduating from their course, with more than 20 per cent saying that they had started looking at least six months before graduation. People who started looking earlier generally reported that their job search was easier - 48 per cent of those that described the job search process as easy started looking for jobs before graduating, compared to only 40 per cent of those that said it was hard to find a job.

* Returnees' main jobseeking channel was Chinese job websites, which more than three quarters said they used, followed by personal contacts and direct applications through the company website. However, the proportion who used their overseas university’s careers centre was very low, with only 1.2 per cent of respondents saying that they had made use of this channel.

* Salary and room for professional development were the most important factors mentioned by returnees when choosing a job, followed by non-salary benefits and location. Location and benefits appear to have become more important compared to the previous survey carried out in 2017, while relevance to the respondent's interests or hobbies has become relatively less important.

* 58 per cent of returnees said that a lack of work experience made it difficult to find a job, with substantial numbers also saying that competition was a major problem. Around a quarter believe that they lack interview skills.

* Employers see graduates' subject area as more important than the university's ranking or reputation, but do place a strong weight on their experience with previous employees from the same university.

* A large majority of employers - 86 per cent - believe that overseas returnees have unrealistically high salary expectations. This proportion has increased compared to two years ago.

Finally, the report discusses the support services students feel would be valuable once they have returned to China. Almost three quarters said that they wanted support in career planning and understanding their position in the job market, while more than half thought they would benefit from training in work-related skills. Other services mentioned by at least 20 per cent of respondents included training in skills related to job-seeking itself; more information about relevant industries in China; internship opportunities; help in writing their CV; and recommendation of specific job openings.

Analysis by Kevin Prest, Senior Analyst, British Council International Education Services

As discussed above, this research can help UK universities better support their graduates when they return to China. It is particularly notable that many of the support services graduates say they need after returning are similar to those offered by universities' career centres, but only a very small proportion of graduates said that they took advantage of these services at their university. This might point towards a perception that careers services are not relevant to graduates returning to China or simply to low awareness of what support universities can offer.

The regional analysis is also relevant for UK universities. The large proportion of students that prefer to head back to their home province after graduation shows that universities should look beyond China’s largest cities when developing employer links and alumni networks, especially given the increasing number of students going abroad from second- and third-tier cities.

The report also has implications for promoting UK university courses in China. This steep salary curve illustrates that it is important to look beyond initial salary when discussing the returns to overseas study, while the importance of “pull” rather than “push” factors in students’ decisions to return to China might suggest that that the UK's newly-reintroduced post-study work visa will have less impact in China compared to other major countries.

Sources

1.QQ News - EIC, 51Job and Yingjiesheng publish "2019 Returning Overseas Graduate Employability Survey Report" (in Chinese): https://new.qq.com/rain/a/20191021A06LEB00

2.EIC, 51Job and Yingjiesheng - 2019 Returning Overseas Graduate Employability Survey Report (in Chinese): [Available in hard copy only]