Studying abroad and teaching in colleges and universities are an important channel for returnees to find employment.

"2012 Study Abroad Trend Survey Report" shows that the number of people studying abroad in my country hit a new high in 2012, approaching 400,000, of which about 380,000 were studying abroad at their own expense, and a large proportion of the students who were studying abroad at their own expense were It is a one-year master's program. Returning to China after completing their studies and teaching in colleges and universities is an important channel for returnees to find employment. However, teaching positions in colleges and universities usually require a doctorate or above. This is somewhat embarrassing for returnees with master's degrees who want to find a job in colleges and universities.

Entering a university: little room for choice

Xiao Youjing is a master’s student in international communication at the University of Leeds in the UK. In June this year, she was officially hired by the School of Literature and Media of China Three Gorges University to engage in teaching and research Work.

Not every returnee who graduates with a master’s degree can successfully enter a university to engage in teaching work like Xiao Youjing. Even so, the options available to them are reduced to a minimum. On the one hand, this is because the minimum academic qualifications for teaching positions in universities such as 985 and 211 are PhDs; on the other hand, scientific research positions in colleges and universities pay more attention to the examination of teachers’ academic abilities, and taught master’s degrees tend to have shorter academic hours and fewer enrollments. There are many places and the curriculum is more application-oriented, so some people think that its knowledge is not deep enough.

Strategy: Get a job first and then choose a career.

In the recruitment of many domestic universities, there are few positions specifically recruiting returnees. However, in the recruitment notices of some universities, there is a statement that "returnees are given priority". For example, the Wang Yanan Institute of Economics of Xiamen University clearly stated in its open recruitment notice for administrative staff: “Have excellent English listening, speaking, reading and writing skills, be able to fully adapt to an all-English working environment, and those with overseas study background will be given priority.” .

For returnees with master’s degrees who hope to enter first-class universities, they can only calm down and engage in relevant administrative work before choosing a career. Bai Junfan, who graduated from the London School of Economics and Political Science, is currently a counselor at a "985" engineering university in China. He is mainly responsible for the administrative affairs of the college's students' overseas exchange programs.

In people’s minds, the salary of college counselors is not very high, and the work is trivial and complicated. Some people vividly call them “college nannies”. Returnees with a master’s degree as counselors seem to be a bit “overqualified”. However, as long as there is an opportunity, master's degree returnees can also demonstrate their abilities. A few years ago, when Wang Hong, who had studied in Germany for 7 years, showed up at the recruitment site for counselors at Shanghai Normal University, the teachers at the Human Resources Office of Shanghai Normal University were really surprised: it was the first time that someone had returned from overseas to apply for a counselor! However, then, Wang Hong got the opportunity to teach "Elementary German", which allowed her to put her advantages to use.

Employers: Academic qualifications are the threshold

During the job search process, it is also important to understand the needs of colleges and universities. Zhou Yang from the Talent Office of Dalian Medical University said that academic qualifications are the most basic threshold. The current recruitment of teachers is basically based on PhDs, while administrative management, laboratory technicians, engineering technicians and other positions mainly recruit master's degree graduates. , and there are almost no positions for recruiting undergraduate graduates. In terms of academic qualification appraisal, since major settings, academic systems, degree awarding methods, etc. vary from country to country, employers can only authenticate through foreign academic degree certificates issued by the Ministry of Education’s Study Abroad Service Center. In addition, examining its business level and scientific research performance is also one of the core links. Zhou Yang believes that there are currently a large number of people who have returned from studying abroad, and their educational backgrounds and professional levels vary widely. Employers will not blindly hire returnees. Job seekers will be treated equally regardless of whether they are overseas returnees or not. Although overseas study experience is more attractive to employers, if they cannot adapt to the domestic work environment, it will be difficult for them to be recognized by employers.

Nowadays, although many returnees with master's degrees are gradually starting to "lower their stature" when applying for jobs, this does not mean that employers will also lower their requirements. On the contrary, as the number of returnees continues to increase, colleges and universities The requirements for talents are getting higher and higher. Zhou Yang suggested that returnees with master's degrees must improve their resumes before applying for jobs, especially business skills and work experience, which are favorable weights for whether they can enter universities.