(Yicai Global) June 21 -- An increasing number of fresh college graduates in China are turning to small and medium-sized cities to start their careers, rather than the bigger municipalities, as the number of jobs in major cities is not keeping pace with the growing number of graduates, according to a new study.

A quarter of college graduates found work in counties or small towns in 2022, an increase of 25 percent from 2018, according to a report from higher education data provider and consultancy Mycos.

And just 13 percent found employment in big cities directly under the central government in 2022, down from 17 percent in 2018, while 28 percent secured jobs in provincial capitals, less than 2018’s 30 percent, the report said.

The reason why more fresh graduates are looking for work in smaller cities is due to changes in the job landscape, Peng Peng, executive president of Guangdong Society of Economic Reform, told Yicai Global. While the number of graduates continues to grow, there are not enough new jobs in the big cities.

The competition for work placements is fierce in big cities and the cost of living is much higher than in small and medium-sized cities, Peng said. Also, expressways and high-speed railways have brought small and big cities closer together in terms of time and space, making the smaller cities more appealing to graduates, he added.

Some 27 percent of vocational school graduates sought employment in smaller towns in 2022. Those graduates from vocational schools who found work in municipalities directly under the central government accounted for only 9 percent of the total number of graduates that year, down from 11 percent in 2018. A quarter of them found work in provincial capitals, less than 2018’s 28 percent, the report said.

Editor: Kim Taylor