Changing Career Preferences Among Chinese Youth
In China, a long-standing belief that “to get rich is glorious” is being questioned as many people, who have pursued wealth with great enthusiasm for decades, reconsider their values. This shift is evident in the career choices of recent high school graduates. This summer, fewer of the country’s brightest 18-year-olds chose to study finance or attend business schools. This trend indicates a waning interest among China’s top students in becoming bankers or corporate executives.
In contrast, institutions such as police academies are becoming popular choices among new graduates. These institutions, which prioritize physical fitness over academic excellence, are appealing because they offer stable and relatively secure job prospects.
Meanwhile, the nation’s super-rich tend to stay out of the public eye. Few Chinese billionaires, aside from a handful of entrepreneurs who claim significance to the state’s agenda, publicly share their views on career, lifestyle, or other topics of public interest.
Despite this, the entrepreneurial spirit remains alive and well in certain parts of China’s economy. For example, in the southern tech hub of Shenzhen, the city’s 17 million residents share a common goal of “gao qian,” or “making money.” As a result, the city’s exports in the first half of the year increased by 35% compared to the previous year.