Gan Xiaochen, 22, an international journalism major graduate, got a bit uneasy during job hunting this year.
22岁的甘晓晨(音译)毕业于国际新闻专业,她在今年的求职过程中感到些许不轻松。
She found herself surrounded by candidates with good language skills, polished manners, and fabulous degrees - the overseas study returnees.
她发现身边的求职者都是些海归,他们语言能力强,举止优雅,拿着一流的学位。
“In a group interview for a ‘Big Four’ accounting firm, I discovered three out of eight candidates have experience studying abroad,” said Gan from Beijing Foreign Studies University.
“在四大会计师事务所的一次集体面试中,我发现3/8的求职者都有海外留学经历。”毕业于北京外国语大学的甘晓晨如是说。
“Good English was no longer an advantage to me, and I had to prove my merit through logic and reasoning.”
“英语好已不再是我的优势,我必须要通过逻辑和推理来证明自身优点。”
Gan got the job. Many grads are facing competition from overseas study returnees.
甘晓晨最终得到了这份工作。许多大学毕业生都面临着与海归的竞争。
The latest statistics from Zhaopin.com show that the number of students returning from studying abroad has reached 186,200 last year, an increase of 38.8 percent from 2010.
来自智联招聘的一份最新调查数据显示,去年留学生海归已达186,200人,较2010相比增长了38.8%
They’re making an impact on the job market. “Both foreign-funded enterprises and local firms with global strategies have a liking for those students,” said William Wu, vice president of the Asia Pacific region at Universum, a leading global employment research company.
他们正在影响着整个就业市场。“外企和许多实施全球化战略的本土公司都偏爱海归。”全球权威人力调研机构优信咨询亚太地区副总裁威廉•吴说。
Wu says proficient language skills as well as an open mindset help them adapt to a multi-national environment. Their independent thinking and decision-making abilities also prepare them for leadership roles.
吴表示,熟练的语言技能和开明的理念,这些都能帮助他们适应跨国环境。他们的独立思考能力以及决策力也使他们今后向领导层发展奠定了基础。
That’s what made Sun Shao, 23, a chemical engineering major from University of Michigan, stand out and land an offer from Deloitte recently.
正是基于该原因,来自密歇根大学化学工程专业的23岁的孙浩(音译)从求职大军中脱颖而出,于近日被德勤会计师事务所录用。
Mary Ma, a recruiting HR manager from Edelman, one of the world’s largest independent public relations companies based in the US, said her company welcomes returned graduates for their practical education.
美国爱德曼公司是世界上最大的一家独立公关公司,该公司的人力资源招聘经理玛丽•马表示他们由于海归所接受的都是实用性教育,所以爱德曼很青睐这类人群。
“Returnees could bring dynamic ideas and fresh perspectives to our clients’ projects,” she said.
“海归能为我们客户的项目带来创新理念和新颖观点。”她说。
“Professors in PR-related majors in the West often have rich working experience within the industry and can share case studies with students.”
“在西方,人力资源相关专业的教授通常都具有丰富的业内工作经验,可以与学生分享案例研究。”
However, as the number of returnee job applicants keeps rising, their degrees alone won’t impress HRs.
然而,由于海归求职者人数持续上升,单凭学位无法给招聘者留下深刻印象。
They have found that some students cram their learning into one or two years. Others are particularly weak when it comes to career planning.
他们发现一些学生利用一至两年的时间死记硬背完成学业,而另一些学生在职业规划方面表现得尤为不足。
“I will have to limit my interest to students who possess either relevant learning experience or a solid internship within the industry,” continued Ma.
“我不得不将兴趣转移到那些既具有相关学习经历,又具备具过硬的业内实习经验的学生。”马继续说。
She said that several candidate earned chance to intern at the Chicago or New York offices of her company.
她说一些求职者已拿到了前往爱德曼芝加哥和纽约分公司实习的机会。
Gong Yile, 23, who has a master’s degree in new media from the University of Leicester in the UK, works as an assistant executive at Edelman.
23岁的龚怡乐(音译)是毕业于英国莱斯特大学新媒体专业的硕士,现在爱德曼公司担任行政助理。
In a project for Volvo, she had the idea of launching an interactive iPad magazine for the Sweden-based auto maker. It won a lot of credit for her team.
在沃尔沃公司的一个项目中,龚怡乐提出为这个来自瑞典的汽车制造商上线一份互动性的iPad杂志。这一创意为她的团队赢得了更多的信任。
“I was thinking in the way I learnt in the UK,” she said.
“我用到了自己在英国所学到的思维方式。”她说。
Her classmate, Han Xuyang, 24, also landed a reporting job on the international desk of The Beijing News.
她的同学,24岁的韩旭阳(音译),也在《新京报》国际事务处找到了一份记者工作。
Han believes his internship at the BBC, work as an assistant at the UN’s World Food Program in London and his part-time sales job at an Apple Store helped nail his current position.
韩旭阳曾在英国广播公司BBC实习,也曾在联合国世界粮食计划署担任助理一职,还曾在苹果店兼职做销售,他坚信这些经历帮助他拿到了现在的这份工作。
But career experts say the influx of returnees doesn’t mean that local students’ prospects will suffer.
然而职业专家表示,留学生归国潮并不意味着本土学生前途堪忧。
Wu advised that they can gain the upper hand with their knowledge of what’s going on in the country. “Get an internship with a company you would like to join and know exactly what they want,” he said. “Then you’ll have a competitive edge few can compare with.”
优信咨询亚太地区副总裁威廉•吴认为本土学生在了解国内形势方面赢得先机。“先在你想要进入的公司里找份实习工作,了解他们的具体需求。”他说,“这样你便会拥有无人能及的竞争力。”