Representative image showing a student writing an exam.
Credit: iStock Photo
Beijing: Over 3.7 million Chinese appeared on Sunday for the first national civil service examination after an increase in the eligibility age cap beyond 35 years, highlighting a surge in demand for government jobs amid the country’s growing unemployment pressures.
The exam selects candidates for the positions in the country's central government and its branches.
Over 3.7 million Chinese appeared for the examination, which meant that roughly 98 applicants are competing for one available post on average, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Approximately 70 per cent of these vacancies are reserved for fresh college graduates, according to authorities.
China has lifted the eligibility age limit for this exam to 38 in general, which is hailed as a welcome move to break the 35-year ceiling normally seen in the job-seeking market.
For new graduates from master's and doctoral programmes, the age cap has been further relaxed to 43, authorities said.
This is also the first exam after China recently announced the K-Visa for foreign STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) professionals, following US President Donald Trump's announcement of a USD one lakh fee to get a new H-1B visa.
Dubbed as China’s H-1B, the new visa faced a backlash in the Chinese social media, with netizens questioning its timing, considering the prevailing high unemployment rate in the country.
The unemployment rate in China is stated to be around 19 per cent, and the pressure on local jobs is already high, with 12 million graduates entering the job market every year.