Competition for good jobs has driven some university graduates to take a down-to-earth attitude toward posts that carry little prestige.

 

The recent graduates, who studied subjects such as vehicle maintenance or environmental supervision, accepted jobs this week that will keep them outdoors mainly to keep the streets of Shanghai's downtown Luwan District spotless.

 

It was the first time in 25 years that Shanghai had hired its own residents for such jobs.

 

"None of them have been late so far, although one took a taxi to work on the first day and two others were accompanied by their parents," Liu, an official with Shanghai City Appearance and Environmental Sanitation Bureau, said.

 

He said all of the students, aged 17 to 35, were doing well on the job but needed to learn some sweeping techniques.

 

"Experienced cleaners will accompany them and tutor them in how to hold a broom and show them the right angle to stroke it, which is not easy," Liu said.

 

But Liu does not expect the college graduates to hang around long. "Although no one has shown any intention to quit, I still doubt they will stay in the job for long," he said.

 

He explained that in the past, only migrant workers took such jobs and most insisted on returning home for the major holidays, a time when the streets needed sweeping.

 

Liu said the upcoming World Expo would create a need for better-educated sweepers.

 

The bureau requires applicants to speak good Mandarin and simple English but Liu said he was surprised to see college graduates.

 

Xie Li, one of the graduates, said the job was harder than she expected but she wanted to keep it because it pays 1,500 yuan a month in the first year and 1,800 yuan the second year.

 

The father of one cleaner, Wang Xiaowen, said that the hard work was good for his daughter's upbringing.

 

"I believe my daughter will have more chances in the future as new technology will be utilized in this field," the father told Shanghai Youth Daily.

 

A similar trend is unfolding in Beijing. A weekend recruitment drive by a public bathing house in the capital lured more than 1,000 university students who agreed to accept entry-level positions there.

 

Also, a funeral house in Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu Province, saw plenty of university graduates at its door recently.

 

Gu Jun, a professor with Shanghai University, said that sweeping or serving in a bathing house required some skills.

 

"But you don't need to go to college to learn them," he said.

 

The Shanghai Educational Committee said that 143,000 students would leave university this summer, up 11 percent on last year.

 

Shanghai Securities News said 30 percent of its students couldn't find a job after graduation.

 

(China Daily April 20, 2007)