Surveys show education matters in boosting economic status

BEIJING, Aug. 4 (Xinhua) -- Recent surveys show that the starting salaries of China's college graduates are not as bad as those of migrant workers, despite a report that claimed they were so.

According to a survey conducted by the China Data Center at Tsinghua University, the average monthly salaries of 2011 graduates amounted to 2,719 yuan (426.5 U.S. dollars), 26 percent greater than those of the previous year.

"The statistics show that the starting salaries of college students are greater than what the media has claimed," said Professor Li Hongbin, executive associate director of the center and one of the report's five authors.

A recent report claimed that 69 percent of graduating college students' starting salaries are below those of migrant workers, stirring debate over the true value of a college education in China.

According to official statistics, migrant workers earned a monthly average of 2,049 yuan in 2011, about 100 U.S. dollars less than that earned by the average college grad that year.

Li said employment for new graduates has become a hot topic, as spiking enrollment numbers at Chinese universities have created intense competition among fresh job-seekers.

The center and the Research Institute of Higher Education have conducted annual surveys of graduates since 2010 in order to obtain information for policymaking and academic studies.

Li said the fact that 72 percent of grads have been able to find jobs indicates success, as many graduates spend more time searching for jobs due to heightened expectations.

Another survey conducted by Mycos, a leading data and consulting organization that focuses on Chinese higher education, reached a similar conclusion through different methods.

Guo Jiao, executive president of Mycos, said the group surveyed more than 250,000 grads from over 200 universities, discovering that 70 percent of respondents had nailed down post-graduation jobs in July and August, just below the China Data Center's figure of 72 percent.   (CCTV)