As one of 39 universities in the national key projects “985” and “211” - programs to build world-classeducational institutions, Southeast University is among the top universities in China. Along with Tsinghua University, Beijing, this university is considered one of the universities that provide “golden tickets” for students to have good job opportunities and further education.
The job description for the school canteen manager position includes: Supervising food development and preparation, managing canteen contractors, controlling food safety and handling administrative procedures. In addition, candidates must be fluent in English, good at using office software, have experience in related fields and be a member of the Communist Party of China.
Newly graduated PhDs line up to receive their degrees at Jinan University in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China. (Photo: Guo Jialiang/VCG)
According to SCMP , the requirement of “having a PhD” for the position of canteen manager at Southeast University immediately caused a heated debate on Chinese social media. Many people think that this is a “waste of brainpower”.
“ Since when does a canteen need a PhD to run it? ” one user commented.
“ This is the result of ‘neijuan ’,” another person shared. “Neijuan” is a popular term in China that refers to an irrationally fierce competition in which people constantly improve their educational level even though the results they achieve later do not match their efforts.
Under pressure from the neijuan trend, more and more young people feel forced to pursue higher education in order to have stable employment opportunities. As of April this year, the urban unemployment rate for those aged 16-24 (excluding students) was 15.8%, down slightly from 16.5% in March.
A school staff member told Shangyou News that applicants do not need to be directly involved in cooking, but will be given priority if they have a major related to food, nutrition or cuisine , as well as possess a culinary certificate.
The expected salary for this position is 180,000 yuan/year (about more than 650 million VND), which is considered a fairly high income compared to the general level. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the average salary last year in the non-private urban sector was 124,110 yuan (about nearly 449 million VND) and in the private sector was 69,476 yuan (about more than 251 million VND).
Some people even suspected that the position was “tailor-made” for a specific person. “ It’s such a coincidence that someone has both a PhD and a culinary certificate. This request is like rolling out the red carpet for someone with connections ,” one netizen quipped.
Although Chinese law prohibits discrimination in hiring based on race, gender, or religion, academic qualifications are not covered. In fact, more and more people are reporting being excluded from hiring because of unreasonable educational requirements.
At the 2025 “Two Sessions” (one of China’s most important political events of the year), Mr. Gan Huatian - Member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference - proposed amending the law to prevent discrimination based on qualifications in the recruitment process.
Source: https://vtcnews.vn/dai-hoc-danh-tieng-gay-tranh-cai-khi-tuyen-quan-ly-cang-tin-phai-co-bang-tien-si-ar946222.html
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