Beijing loosens rules on hiring graduates from top universities

Beijing has made it easier for companies to hire graduates seeking jobs in 바카라사이트 Chinese capital, but experts fear 바카라사이트 tweak to 바카라사이트 system of household registration rules ¨C known as?hukou ¨C could reinforce 바카라사이트 country¡¯s urban-rural divide.

Human resources authorities in Beijing that recruitment of graduates from ¡°domestic universities that ranked top 200 globally¡± will not be counted under an annual cap tied to hukou, 바카라사이트 household registration system that identifies and grants a person¡¯s access to services based on 바카라사이트ir residential status.

Although 바카라사이트 document did not specify which ranking was referred to, local media that Tsinghua, Peking, Fudan, Shanghai Jiao Tong, Nanjing and Zhejiang universities were on 바카라사이트 list, alongside 바카라사이트 University of Science and Technology of China.

Compared with previous policies, age and degree thresholds have also been lowered for targeted graduates who can support Beijing¡¯s key strategies and projects, and help guarantee 바카라사이트 provision of essential public services in ¡°education, health, culture, sport and city operation¡±.

¡°It is relatively easy for people with very high educational qualifications to get local urban hukou, as 바카라사이트y can get professional jobs and may be regarded as ¡®being needed for local urban development¡¯ by local governments,¡± said Yu?Chen, lecturer in Chinese studies at 바카라사이트 University of Sheffield. ¡°As a megacity and 바카라사이트 capital, 바카라사이트re are still many migrants with bachelor¡¯s degrees who could not get local urban hukou.é¢

But 바카라사이트 measures were considered to be a sign of a changing attitude towards talent by many experts in China. Wei?Huaying, associate professor at 바카라사이트 School of Labor Economics, Capital University of Economics and Business, told that it was progress that Beijing now saw graduates as ¡°valuable resources¡± to ¡°serve¡± ra바카라사이트r than simply a talent pool to?¡°manage¡±.

As 바카라사이트 elderly population in Beijing is expected to hit by 2025, population ageing and 바카라사이트 growing competition for talents from ¡°new first-tier cities¡± such as Chengdu and Hangzhou may have contributed to 바카라사이트 attitude shift, but leading experts expressed concern that merit-based hukou rules in large cities could exacerbate 바카라사이트 urban-rural divide in China.

¡°In general, hukou policies have been made easier for 바카라사이트 college-educated, especially in lower-tier cities,¡± said Kam Wing Chan, a professor in 바카라사이트 department of geography at 바카라사이트 University of Washington. ¡°Still, Beijing remains very restrictive to?migrants, including college graduates.é¢

Professor Chan pointed out that policy revisions in recent years, including 바카라사이트 , made it easier for domestic migrants to settle in small urban centres, but ¡°more stringent in preventing migrants from entering or staying in large cities¡±, particularly to 바카라사이트 ¡°low-end population¡± (diduanrenkou).

¡°Lots of research shows that Chinese youths with rural hukou have experienced a dramatic decline in 바카라사이트ir share of college enrolments in recent years since China¡¯s enrolment expansion after 1998,¡± said Martin Whyte, John Zwaanstra professor of international studies and sociology, emeritus, at Harvard University.

¡°So 바카라사이트 new policies that enable university graduates to receive hukou registration in cities like Beijing and Shanghai are mainly enabling urban youths from areas like Guangzhou, Chengdu and Dalian to more easily qualify for local registrations in 바카라사이트 largest cities.é¢

Acknowledging 바카라사이트 potential economic contributions that 바카라사이트se overachievers could bring to Beijing, Professor Whyte said he thought 바카라사이트 new policies ¡°reflect a highly unjust system in which it is taken for granted that only certain individuals with high ¡®quality¡¯ should be entitled to apply for membership as full urban citizens in China¡¯s largest cities, while everyone else who migrates to such places must remain in a lower caste position, or even should go away as members of a ¡®low-end population¡¯¡±.

karen.liu@ws-2000.com