Did Better Colleges Bring Better Jobs? Estimating the Effects of College Quality on Initial Employment for College Graduates in China

Oct 15, 2026

The paper investigates whether higher college quality leads to better initial employment outcomes for fresh graduates in China. Using 2011 College Student Labor Market survey data from Tsinghua University, it estimates effects on employment status and employer ownership. Propensity score matching addresses potential endogeneity in elite college attendance. Evidence indicates Project 985 graduates are more likely to secure immediate jobs, while Project 211 graduates gain advantages entering public sectors. Results suggest non-elite graduates face labor market segmentation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages32

Reading Time1 h 21 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Background of China’s graduate unemployment

College quality and pathways to employment

Research Context

Project 985 and Project 211 overview

Did Better Colleges Bring Better Jobs? Estimating the Effects of College Quality on Initial Employment for College Graduates in China Li Yu Institute of Education, Huazhong University of Science and Technology The unemployment problem of college students in China has drawn much attention from academics and society. Using the 2011 College Student Labor Market (CSLM) survey data from Tsinghua University, this paper estimated the effects of college quality on initial employment, including employment status and employment unit ownership for fresh college graduates. The propensity score matching method was employed to account for the potential endogeneity of elite college attendance. The empirical evidence suggested that students who attended Project 985 colleges were more likely to find jobs immediately after college graduation. Moreover, students graduated from Project 211 universities gained a competitive edge by entering into public working sectors, such as the government or state-owned enterprises (SOEs), compared with students from non-elite colleges. The results imply the students who graduated from non-elite universities faced labor market segmentation. They not only had obstacles in finding jobs, but also ended up in the secondary labor market. Introduction Over the past several years, unemployment has become a troubling issue for a considerable number of fresh college graduates and their families in China. Although this unemployment dilemma did not solely appear in China, it was more prominent in mainland China and drew much attention from academia and Chinese society. Several factors combined together may play dominant roles in explaining the sources of severe unemployment problems that lasted for years. First, the Chinese Central Government initiated the higher education expansion policy in 1999. The expansion began as an attempt to alleviate the economic crisis and became the fastest expansion inhuman history (Levin, 2010) . The expansion sharply increased the unemployment rate among young college1 graduates (S. Li, Whalley & Xing, 2014). Meanwhile, the economic downturn and staggered industry development greatly decreased the demand to absorb labor forces, especially those who newly entered the labor force with limited work experience and unguaranteed productivity (Bai, 2006) . Moreover, the unified college course curriculum and low-quality university training that produced graduates with limited capacity gainsand skill accumulation during their college education may deteriorate youth unemployment. Under these circumstances, finding employment immediately after college graduation has become a big challenge for many students, not to mention those who never predicted fierce initial job market competition and were seriously underprepared. Even for those who were lucky enough to locate jobs after college graduation, they may end up with secondary labor market jobs with unsecured future prospects and a low salary. By weighing the costs and benefits of attending college, some senior high school students chose not to take the National College Entrance Examination (NCEE) . For those who still wish to pursue higher education domestically, it is crucial for them to choose where to attend a university. Therefore, admission into better–quality universities is viewed as the path to ensure college returns for human capital investment. However, there is limited empirical evidence in China that estimates the impact of college quality on initial employment. In addition, it is essential for higher education institutions (HEIs) to clarify the impact of college quality on fresh graduates’ employment, and to improve institutional effectiveness and efficiency. In addition, obtaining an answer to the research question of whether attending better colleges brought better jobs would be illuminating for higher education policymakers who conduct an evaluation and appraisal of large and costly national college quality enhancement

FAQs

What data and method does the paper use to estimate the effect of college quality?

It uses the 2011 College Student Labor Market (CSLM) survey data from Tsinghua University. Propensity score matching is applied to account for potential endogeneity in attending elite colleges.

How does attending Project 985 or Project 211 colleges relate to initial employment outcomes?

Students attending Project 985 colleges are more likely to find jobs immediately after graduation. Graduates from Project 211 universities gain a competitive edge in entering public working sectors such as government or state-owned enterprises compared with non-elite college students.

What does the paper suggest about labor market outcomes for non-elite university graduates?

Non-elite graduates face labor market segmentation, facing obstacles in finding jobs and ending up in the secondary labor market with less secure future prospects.

Oct 15, 2026

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