Study: employability of Chinese university graduates

The study was carried out within the “Smart Education China” initiative, supported by a joint research centre of transformis and ECNU. Its background was the restructuring of the Chinese economic model. Instead of exports, production and investment, the economy was in future to rely more on domestic demand, innovation and services. “Made in China 2025” stood as the label for the intended path from the workbench of the world to a knowledge economy.

For this transformation, the country needed well-trained skilled workers. At the same time, the government had greatly expanded the higher education sector since the turn of the millennium, so that the number of graduates rose steadily. For its period, the study describes a “mismatch”: despite the oversupply of academics, many positions remained unfilled because applicants did not meet the requirements.

The study set out to clarify what caused this discrepancy, what structural and curricular development needs exist in the education system, and how academic and vocational education differ in their strengths and weaknesses.

The research section of the study places the concept of employability in context. Hillage understands it as a dynamically changing ability: to find a job, keep it and acquire a new one if necessary. Brown adds the influence of the educational environment. Academic background, choice of subject and even the place of study can shape employers’ hiring preferences. He therefore defines employability as the relative probability of gaining and keeping a job.

Cai also counts the reputation of the university among the influencing factors. Zheng Xiaoming relates the concept to abilities acquired during studies through learning and practice. The study also refers to competence catalogues of government bodies in the USA, the UK, Canada and Australia.

For its own survey, the study defines employability as a combination of hard and soft skills developed during studies and in practice. They are meant to enable graduates to adapt quickly in the workplace and to meet employers’ requirements. From this it derives four dimensions: professional and methodological competencies, social competencies, personal competencies, and experience and additional qualifications.

From 7 September to 2 October 2015, 3,500 German companies operating in China were invited to take part in an online survey on the professional qualifications of Chinese entry-level employees. 218 data sets could be clearly assigned to German companies in China and were included in the analysis.

According to the study, at least 189 responses were needed to make statements about the roughly 5,200 German companies in China at the time with a confidence level of 95 per cent and a margin of error of 7 per cent. According to its account, the distribution by region, company size and industry also met the requirements for a representative sample. The questionnaire comprised 36 mainly closed questions.

The core of the analysis is a comparison. For 37 competencies, the companies stated how important they are and to what degree graduates bring them to the job. The difference between importance and fulfilment shows where the greatest need for development lies.

In their overall assessment, the majority of companies were satisfied with the graduates they had hired: 77 per cent were partly to very satisfied. The study found no significant differences between company departments. Recruitment itself was difficult. Reasons given for unfilled positions included, in addition to professional and practical shortcomings, a lack of intercultural experience and insufficient personal and social competencies.

A higher formal degree was not the first choice in every area. For commercial administration and technical areas, a narrow majority preferred the bachelor’s degree to the master’s. Across all areas, the master’s degree was ahead with 46 per cent, followed by the bachelor’s with 41 per cent. A doctorate was preferred by 6 per cent, mainly for research and development. When hiring, companies often had to make compromises on the desired qualifications.

The study also describes high staff turnover. Young employees used the shortage of qualified young talent to take career steps and secure salary jumps by changing employers. 25 per cent of employment relationships that ended within the first two years were terminated by the entry-level employees in order to take up another position.

Where poor performance was the reason, companies mainly cited a lack of professional and methodological knowledge (23 per cent). This was followed by a lack of social competencies (14 per cent), a lack of confidence in practical work (13 per cent) and personal competencies (12 per cent). Intercultural problems were cited least often, at 7 per cent.

In the professional and methodological cluster, problem-solving competence ranked first: 91 per cent importance compared with 53 per cent fulfilment. At 38 percentage points, this was the largest gap in the entire survey. The gap was similarly large for analytical and decision-making ability (85 to 51 per cent).

The figures were more favourable where knowledge and learning are concerned. Learning competence reached 68 per cent fulfilment against 88 per cent importance, subject-specific skills 64 against 81 per cent, and broad knowledge of the discipline 62 against 77 per cent. For research competence, the gap was only 8 percentage points.

In the cluster of experience and additional qualifications, expectation and fulfilment were closest together. General IT skills (73 to 69 per cent) and experience with office applications (76 to 69 per cent) were largely met. The only larger gap in this cluster was in foreign language skills, at 81 to 60 per cent.

The most important single competence in the entire survey was a sense of responsibility, with 92 per cent importance and 58 per cent fulfilment. Teamwork (91 to 63 per cent) and communication skills (89 to 59 per cent) followed. The companies rated the courage to admit one’s own mistakes, and to point out errors in organisational work processes, as important at 82 per cent in each case, and saw it fulfilled at only 50 per cent.

Among the personal competencies, a sense of quality (88 to 56 per cent), independent working (87 to 59 per cent) and decisiveness (78 to 49 per cent) were furthest apart. Commitment performed comparatively well with 71 per cent fulfilment, resilience with 68, results orientation with 66 and flexibility with 65 per cent.

In its comparison, the study names as strengths, among others, IT and office skills, specialist knowledge, research competence, broad subject knowledge, resilience and flexibility. As weaknesses it lists problem solving, analytical and decision-making ability, sense of responsibility, dealing with mistakes, sense of quality, and conflict, communication and teamwork skills. Across all 37 competencies, average importance was 78 per cent and fulfilment 58 per cent.

Expectations rose with the level of the degree. The gap to the performance shown was nevertheless largest for graduates of vocational schools, even though the lowest expectations were placed on them.

The study attributes the results to two causes. The first is the low status of vocational education. In society it was regarded as a second-class educational path, to be considered only when the general educational path remained closed. The study refers to deeply rooted educational ideals according to which mental work traditionally ranks above manual work. Preparation for the university entrance examination (Gaokao) begins as early as kindergarten age.

A university degree promised a higher salary, prestige and social influence. This attitude favoured the expansion of higher education, while the economy and the labour market did not develop at the same pace. The study reports that the government countered this with a 28-point plan for the accelerated development of modern vocational training. Under this plan, up to 600 universities were to be converted into vocational bachelor’s universities.

The study sees the second cause in examination-oriented education. A system geared towards examinations and recitation leaves little room for creativity and initiative. It therefore calls for a shift from examination-oriented education to holistic quality education.

Information is ever more readily available, and the half-life of knowledge is falling. Pure knowledge transfer and testing this knowledge in examinations are then no longer sufficient. What must be promoted are the abilities to obtain and evaluate knowledge, as well as interdisciplinary competencies that enable flexible and lifelong learning.

As a result, Chinese university graduates received more recognition for academic knowledge and professional skills than for soft competencies. The study sees the main responsibility for narrowing the gap between employability and companies’ needs as lying with the universities. In its assessment, they paid too little attention to the issue.

As a frame of reference, the study cites the USEM model by Knight and Yorke from 2004. It describes employability in four elements: understanding of subject knowledge (Understanding), professional and general skills (Skills), self-efficacy beliefs (Efficacy Beliefs) with personal qualities, self-confidence and motivation to learn, and metacognition (Meta-cognition) as strategic thinking and acting.

The study measures the universities’ careers guidance against this standard. It describes it as a neglected administrative unit with too few professionally trained staff. Employability was often confused with the ability to apply for jobs. What was offered was short-term help such as job information, dress etiquette and interview training. Long-term, structured support was lacking. The study sums this up with a Chinese proverb: teach people to fish instead of giving them fish.