One of the most important things you can say about recent conversations with parents and young people who have just graduated from school is that reading is becoming more and more “uneconomical”。
A few days ago, the girl from the neighbor's house downstairs, regular 2nd degree, ran dozens of job fairs and offered more than 200 resumes, either paid more than 3,000, or had a job at first sight. Her cousin did not study undergraduate studies, studied high-level new energy maintenance, graduated directly to a local car company and earned more than 5,000 traineeships, with a paycheck, plus a paycheck。
In contrast, many parents have expressed themselves in their hearts: how can a student who has worked hard to get a child to finish college and a degree in undergraduate studies enjoy better than a technical student? I thought reading changed fate. By 2026, the wind seemed to change
I have devoted myself to the official data published this year by the ministry of education and the ministry of human welfare, as well as the analysis published by industry experts, which, without blowbacks, is really talking about the real situation in the current job market and about the ways in which ordinary family children can walk without a name school or a home. The whole story, no hard-to-understand professional words, is the truth that civilians can understand。
Let's start with a set of real official figures。
The ministry of education announced in november last year that the total number of graduates from 2026 national higher education institutions was 12. 7 million, an increase of 480,000 over the previous year, with the number of graduates remaining above the tens of millions level for five consecutive years, a record high。
What is the concept of 12. 7 million people? This is equivalent to an influx of the entire population of a medium-sized city into the job market. The number of young people in need of employment this year is close to 15 million. However, this spring has released more than 5 million high-quality school places, with an overall supply and demand ratio close to 2:1, with the inside volume visible。
More clearly, the market is “diverse”: on the one hand, a large number of ordinary undergraduates are unable to find their jobs, and on the other hand, technological jobs such as new energy, intelligent manufacturing, artificial intelligence, and high-end nursing are constantly missing. The ministry of human rights and social welfare has previously publicly analysed the issue of “industry-brain mismatches”: a number of technical jobs are paid between 15,000 and 20,000 a month, and businesses still fail to employ young people who can do their jobs; it is against traditional civil service, administration, general accounting, and general literature jobs, with seven or eight graduates competing for the same basic position, and even “one thousand miles”。
Many say that a diploma is of no value, and more precisely that the employment premium for a regular undergraduate degree is significantly reduced. Ten years ago, as long as there is an undergraduate certificate in hand, there is a natural advantage in entering private firms and in the examination process; now that higher education has moved from elite to popularization, six or seven out of ten people in the street may be in their scientific history, with a diploma in ordinary colleges, more than a minimum threshold for seeking employment, no longer directly equivalent to high wages and stability。
This is also borne out by the data from the iupu recruitment and previous years' michaels institute research: the overall employment rate for 2024 senior college graduates was 92. 3 per cent in six months, compared to 84. 7 per cent in the same period for the general “twice” undergraduates, and the employment rate for some of the cold-sense arts professions fell even to about 76 per cent. In the area of salaries, the number of specialties in the areas of partial control, new energy technology and software development, with the corresponding pay ranges from 4800 to 5500 yuan, is not very different from that for general arts undergraduates, and the increase in the number of skilled workers tends to increase significantly after several years of work。
Professor liu jia of the university of qinghua had previously publicly mentioned a realistic view: the dividends of the academic qualifications of the university would last for up to three or five years. After many years of graduation, businesses no longer rely solely on the name of the school, with the core view of merit and the value they can bring to the company. If there is only one paper diploma and there is a lack of matching skills, either undergraduate or general master's degree, the workplace may gradually lose its competitiveness。
It must be objectively stated here that the extreme of the “no use of reading” cannot be reached. Key institutions, such as 985 and 211, have high levels of education in scarce subjects such as chips, clinical medicine and high-end engineering. The true “depreciation” is a mass of homogenous ordinary undergraduates, lacking physical support, and cold-door arts diplomas — a structural problem, not all of which are useless。
The current decline in the gold content of the diploma and the changes in the job market are largely attributable to three generally accepted official and expert sources, all of which are well documented, without any minor information。
First, higher education institutions continue to expand, and the supply of manpower far exceeds the increase in traditional civilian posts。
The number of undergraduates and graduate students has increased by more than a dozen over the past two decades, but the number of posts that are not dependent on hard nuclear technology, such as administration, operation and in-house work, has grown slowly. Limited jobs, a steady increase in job-seekers and a natural increase in competition. A number of general higher education institutions are lagging behind in the upgrading of their professional set-up and the content of their courses is out of step with the real needs of the enterprise. According to the survey, over 60 per cent of the enterprises hr feedback is: the theory of succession is well developed, but it takes two to three months to re-train, with high human costs, and the firm naturally does not want to pay more easily。
Second, industrial upgrading forces the market to focus more on practical skills。
The country is currently developing manufacturing, high-end manufacturing and digital economies, with the largest market gap being in skilled jobs. In the past, enterprises had recruited people to study first, and priority was now given to whether they would be able to work, whether they had relevant hands-on experience and whether they could quickly generate benefits. The same two job-seekers, one with no experience in general undergraduate studies, one with a high-level qualification and one with a career in enterprise, will be given priority by most smes。
Thirdly, the national education policy has been overhauled and the promotion of vocational education has been strengthened。
According to such documents as the programme for the construction of a strong state of education (2024-2035), the next decade will see the continuous improvement of the modern system of vocational education, the expansion of undergraduate vocational enrolment and the complete promotion of middle-level, senior-level, professional-level and postgraduate students. There is an ongoing policy of “advanced entrance examinations” whereby highly skilled people are exempted from entry to higher educational institutions, the winners of the world skills contest are guaranteed undergraduate studies, and the path to the advancement of skilled personnel is gradually being opened, and there is no longer a single bridge of ordinary high examinations。
Policy adjustments have been beneficial, as have real difficulties, and the advantages and disadvantages have been objectively dismantled and no large pies painted。
The good side is clear:
In the future, children will not have to die from cultural studies, and will be able to study and study skills. They will also be able to study undergraduate studies and studies; enterprises will be able to employ skilled workers with social security benefits, tax exemptions and a steady increase in wages and benefits for skilled jobs is expected; there will be a large gap in skills at the grass-roots level, with a significantly higher employment rate than in general education, and a higher incidence of employment errors among ordinary people。
It's hard to avoid:
There are still many parents who feel that they are “lower” than they are at present; in some areas, quality vocational schools are under-resourced, and practical training facilities are not keeping pace with the pace of industrial renewal; in the initial stages of their professional studies, social recognition needs to be increased over time, and regular full-time undergraduates continue to be preferred in short-term admissions to posts in the public service and in part in the service sector。
A brief summary of the current situation: the era of “sliding” with an ordinary university diploma is over。
The evaluation criteria for young people in the future market are broadly divided into two lines: academic, institutional, more prestigious and popular professional qualifications; and industrial, market-oriented employment, practical skills, vocational certificates and project experience, with a weight that goes well beyond a diploma. In the case of children with no resources and ordinary families, it is better to plan ahead of time a path of development suited to their own conditions and with relatively stable gaps than a common undergraduate。
In conjunction with the support policies issued by the ministry of education and the ministry of human welfare and the demand for industrial talent, four relatively pragmatic and accessible solutions for ordinary children, irrespective of their priority, are available, depending on their personality and performance。
First route: deep tiller skills track, through vocational education
It is suitable for children with a high level of literacy achievement。
This is currently a path of more stable employment and larger market gaps, as well as a focus on national support. There is no need to focus on ordinary undergraduate studies, and local “two-high-level” higher-level institutions can be selected, giving priority to new energy vehicle technology, smart manufacturing, numerical control, software development, nursing, infant and child care, or rail transport, etc。
Policy supports higher-level vocational studies at the junior middle-level and higher-level levels, after which they can continue their studies and obtain their scientific experience, followed by a regular examination and vocational qualification. A real case in point is the case of a local student with a high-level new energy specialty, who has been working in a garage for a long time during school hours, holds a certificate as a maintenance technician, is hired by a local new energy vehicle, starting with a monthly salary of $5,000, offers accommodation, and a skill bonus, which has increased to more than 8,000 per month two years after graduation; during the same period, a number of students in general humanities are still constantly changing their jobs, holding salaries of about $4,000。
Recommendations:
The selection of a profession is prioritized in line with the direction of the local pillar industry, avoiding management professions that are more “out-of-the-shelf” such as marketing, business management, and taking part in more practical training, skills competitions for enterprises during school hours, taking the required trade certificate as early as possible and saving the full course of practice prior to graduation。
Second course: candidates for policy positions at the grass-roots level, taking a stable path
They are suitable for children who are able to suffer and seek security and do not exclude those working in towns and counties。
This year, the ministry of human welfare launched the fifth round of the “three ones” programme, recruiting more than 40,000 grass-roots service providers across the country, covering such posts as teaching, farming, medical support, village rehabilitation and support, with the central financial sector providing special subsidies for jobs in the central and western regions. Upon completion of service, there is a policy of targeted recruitment, scoring of written examinations, etc., in the case of institutions, civil servants, etc., and in some parts of the period of qualifying service, career development is carried out directly。
In addition, posts such as “scientific assistant” of the “special teacher” of the western plan, “community volunteer work for the lives of the people”, are open to students of the appropriate age. The competitive pressure for such jobs is much lower than that for urban areas, the threshold is relatively broad, with regular undergraduates and high-level graduates enrolled, and accommodation allowances, social security, etc., are suitable for young people who do not want to be overstretched and pursue stable development in large cities。
Recommendations:
It is essential that the right-to-be status be used well, usually for policy support within two years of graduation; priority is given to basic jobs in the surrounding districts, with low cost of living, faster return of policy dividends and better development of the home after service。
Third course: the need for practical skills and market-based self-employment entrepreneurship
It suits young people who are flexible and do not want to be held hostage by companies。
Even if academic qualifications do not prevail, it is possible to avoid academic writings as long as the market has the skills to do so. For example, short video clippings, interior design, electrician welding, mother and child care, oral care, numerical programming, car repair testing, etc., have long-term market demand。
The state has an enabling policy for young people to start their own businesses: in order to start their own businesses, they can apply for a discount guarantee of up to 200,000 yuan (individuals) for start-ups and up to 4 million yuan for micro-enterprises, and local incubators for start-ups can provide free premises, training and tax breaks for self-employment. A number of graduates who have completed nursing, beauty and electrical maintenance have gone back to their homes to open a shop or to work as freelancers, often earning more than ordinary clerks in writing buildings。
Recommendations:
Skill learning gives preference to public hands-on training bases, school cooperative training courses and government subsidy for skills training, on condition, and not to be blind or insensitive to small-scale crafts, with priority given to people's livelihoods, manufacturing skills and greater resistance to market volatility。
Fourth route: differentiation to the next level, avoiding the “diplomatic arts”, sprinting on hard-core nuclear and medical subjects
Children who have achieved a good level of education are willing to continue their studies。
If a child has the ability to enter undergraduate studies, it is important to avoid competitive generalities such as chinese language, business administration, journalism and law, and to give priority to new specializations such as computers, electrical automation, clinical medicine, teacher orientation and agroforestry。
There are two regular cold arts specialties, which are more suitable after graduation, while technical barriers exist in the industrial and medical professions, and the accumulation of experience increases. If the undergraduate level is normal and continues to study for advanced studies after graduation, a master's degree is still relatively competitive in the job market。
Recommendations:
Before filing for voluntary service, consult in advance the directory of scarce talent published by the provincial social services sector, avoiding professions that have been underemployed for many years in the course of their lives; not only attend classes during university hours, actively enter laboratories, seek long-term internships in enterprises, accumulate project experience and compensate for the short-term qualifications of ordinary colleges。
Finally, a few directly available practical advice for ordinary families and young students can be done after reading:
(b) putting aside the doctrine of “substantiation” and objectively assessing the child's performance and character. If you are good at learning and culture, you follow the traditional path of advancement; if you are capable and unable to sit in the classroom, you plan the course of vocational skills as soon as possible, without having to squeeze a thousand troops on the underwood bridge. The choice of profession gives priority to “market gaps”, followed by interest and finally fame. A better professional name and, in the absence of a counterpart job, graduation may still be subject to transfer. Read more about the directory of scarce talent issued by the local community, following industry demand. During the school year, first priority is given to exercise, certification and internships. At present, under the same conditions, traineeships and vocational certificates tend to have a higher weight than regular university diplomas. Try not to be idle during the summer break and seek to enter the industry in question. I've never seen anything like it. Most of the jobs at the grass-roots level, enterprise recruitment, business start-up subsidies and job placements are open to just two-year-old graduates, and it is difficult to benefit from the same policy when missed. Either way, continuous upgrading is not an alternative. Diplomas are just knock-on bricks and long-term career development is based on continuous learning. Even in the case of skilled jobs, it is necessary to learn the new technologies of the industry on a regular basis so as to avoid market phase-out。
Objectively speaking, the change in the job market in 2026 was not “reading is useless”, but a complete end to the era of “one-educated almighty”. The avenues of future talent are more diverse, and undergraduate studies are no longer the only way forward. The acquisition of hard-core skills, the establishment of roots, the establishment of self-employment, and the demand for engineering in deep-farming are all paths to a better life for ordinary children. Parents do not have to be too anxious or blindly push their children to die in school undergraduates, choosing the course in their own circumstances is far more important than a general diploma with a small amount of gold。
Do you have any examples of ordinary undergraduates getting paid less than tech students? If the child's average, would you rather have regular undergraduates or a stable technique? You are welcome to share your views in the comment area。
