Crowded rat race

These days, nothing gets Ma Hui more excited than when her phone rings. It could be a potential employer.

Ma Hui, who is graduating from a college in Shandong Province answers the call on the first ring, but ends up disappointed when it turns out to be her parents calling to ask if she has found a job yet.

About 7 million college students are expected to graduate this summer, almost equivalent to the entire population of Hong Kong. This marks a national record and an increase of 190,000 over last year.

Let's not forget that another 210,000 graduates from last year still haven't found a job, complicating matters further.

Earlier this month, President Xi Jinping paid a surprise visit to a job fair in Tianjin, a move experts said showed the leader's concerns for the job market.

"Employment is the basis of people's livelihoods, and is also an issue confronting the whole world," Xi was quoted by the Xinhua News Agency as saying. "Without economic growth, the employment issue can't be solved."

Experts believe the number of unemployed graduates has raised alarms about social stability.

"The employment of graduates is not just a matter of people's livelihoods and economic performance, but is also linked to social harmony and the country's stability," Luo Jianhui, deputy dean of the School of Journalism at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times. "It is a true test for the quality of higher education."

However, many believe the problem is not easy to fix amid the rapid expansion of college admissions and a seemingly contracting job market.

Job dissatisfaction

"It is not that graduates really can't find a job but many of them are waiting for their dream job," Li Dandan, 23, new graduate from Anhui University, told the Global Times.

After rounds of interviews, she found a job in a trade company in November last year but she still keeps trying to become a government official.

According to a recent report conducted by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, job satisfaction is low among new graduates. Only 1.6 percent of graduates said they felt satisfied with their jobs and about 60 percent of 2011 graduates said they had already changed jobs once or twice.

Government positions seem to be dream jobs for new graduates as many parents who are limited to only one child believe the job can lead to a steady and happy life. The number of students taking the national civil-service exam reached over 1 million in 2008. On average, there are 60 applicants per vacancy but some prize posts see more than 1,000 hopefuls.

Maybe the new generation is not as spoiled as many people think. To save money during their long-term job hunting, some 40 new graduates decided to share a 130-square-meter room equipped with only one bathroom in Beijing together, according to Beijing Youth Daily.

However, government officials and experts expressed worries that groups of unemployed graduates, also known as "ant tribes", could pose a threat to social stability.

"They were told education could change their lives, but now they can't find a job after college, they might feel angry at society," said Zhou Tianmin, National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

A survey found out the starting salary of 69 percent of 2012 graduates is about 2,000 yuan ($326.4) a month, which is less than the average salary of a farmer. The survey caused debate on whether or not high education is becoming increasingly irrelevant.

Tao Hongkai, a professor of education at Huazhong Normal University, told the Global Times that new graduates should face the music.

"Students think it is a great deal to go to college but they should lower their expectations," Tao said. "The job market will not get better in the years ahead, so get a job first, and pick your career later."

Many said the rapid expansion of university rolls is to blame. Aiming to give more people access to higher education, China started expanding university rolls in 1999. The number of graduates jumped from 1.08 million in 1998 to 6.99 million in 2013.

The college building boom also turned vocational schools into full-blown universities. This has obviously had a huge impact on the graduate job market.