Grads drive local economic development

College graduates seek employment opportunities at a job fair for local students in Huai'an, Jiangsu province, on Wednesday. (ZHOU CHANGGUO/FOR CHINA DAILY)

A growing number of Chinese college graduates are contributing to regional economic development and entering industries aligned with national priorities, according to recent employment and education quality reports from Chinese universities.

Many graduates are choosing to remain in the regions where they graduated, becoming key drivers of local economic growth.

At Jilin University, 38.5 percent of its more than 10,000 graduates in 2024 opted to work in Jilin province, taking jobs with major companies such as China First Automobile Works, one of the country's oldest and largest automakers, and CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles. Leading industries for these graduates include manufacturing, education and public administration.

Similarly, South China Normal University in Guangdong province reported that 91.3 percent of its bachelor's degree graduates who found jobs over the past three years were employed in the province, primarily in the Pearl River Delta cities of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan and Dongguan.

Northwest University in Xi'an, Shaanxi province, said historically, about 70 percent of its graduates opt to remain in the region, with many working in remote and underdeveloped areas, underscoring their role in promoting balanced economic growth.

Meanwhile, many graduates are supporting China's strategic goals by entering key industries such as technology, national defense and energy.

At the Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, 83.4 percent of 2024 graduates joined national strategic institutions and leading enterprises, including defense technology organizations, government agencies and the country's top 100 IT companies.

At Xi'an Jiaotong University, 64.1 percent of employed graduates, as of late last year, were hired by State-owned enterprises, research institutions or Fortune Global 500 companies.

Harbin Engineering University in Heilongjiang province has formed 13 employment teams to focus on industries with urgent needs, including shipbuilding, nuclear energy and aviation.

The university reported that more than 70 percent of its graduates last year entered fields critical to industrialization, informatization and national defense, with about 40 percent working in defense technology.

Government initiatives to encourage grassroots service are also influencing career choices.

Hunan University said 122 of its more than 4,900 graduates joined grassroots programs last year, while Donghua University in Shanghai reported that 148 of its more than 3,200 graduates took positions at the county level or below, and 135 moved to western regions.

At the China University of Petroleum's Beijing campus, more than 20 percent of employed graduates chose careers in the energy sector, particularly in western regions and grassroots positions.

Graduates' employment trends also reflect the specialized strengths of their universities.

For example, at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, 39 percent of graduates in 2023 found jobs with national art troupes, conservatories or music institutions, up 27.3 percent from the previous year, according to the school's employment report.