2. Content
• British Council projects in Employability
• China Employer Perception Research Brief Findings
• Alumni UK Network
• Generation UK - UK Outward Mobility Project
• Introduction to Workshop

3. British Council China Projects in Employability
• Forums and workshop (Students & Careers Advisers)
• Research on Employer Perceptions and Graduate
Employment
• Support to Chinese UK alumni
- Annual career development workshop in the UK & China;
- Mini job fair in China

4. When it comes to UK Graduates ……
Employers have a very vague image of a UK
graduate
• Most cannot tell what is the difference
between UK graduates and other
overseas graduates
• Most can only describe UK as “English”,
“formal”, “cultured”
• A clearer picture of US (liberal, strong,
casual, advance, international) and
Germany (punctual, rational, tough)

5. Rather a long distant…
German graduates
HK graduates are the are perceived to
closest to local ones. own some typical
Local graduates tend to
They tend to own the German characters,
have better adaptive
same strengths with such as good
capability to company
locals. planning, hard-
culture and domestic job
Nevertheless, they are working, and
market.
considered to be more down-to-earth.
They are easier to get
along with and less initiative and have
likely to change their job better spirit of
compared to overseas innovation. They are
graduates. also better in English.
US graduates impress UK graduates are Australia graduates
the employers with perceived to have don‟t leave deep
their open-minded, wide range of impression to
spirit of innovation knowledge, good employers. They
and wide range of planning, and better are considered to
knowledge. thinking. be easy to get along
UK graduates are with.
quite different with
local ones in their
minds They are
considered to be in
„typically British‟ and
Close to me not easy to get along
with.

6. Moderate across all skills set …. (perception)
Team work
International perspective Communication skill
China
Adaptive capability
Leadership
Australia
HK
Self-motivation
Reporting
UK
Germany
English level Problem solving ability
US
Computer skill Ability to work independently
Persuasive ability Work planning
Analysis skill Professional skill
Time management

7. Strength Weakness Opportunity Threat
Overseas returnees Overseas returnees  As the China market is  Quality gap between
English opening up, managerial locals and returnee
Company fit
roles where Chinese graduates are
Leadership Loyalty with international closing in.
Internship Teamwork perspectives are  Employers have
needed. negative pre-
Career planning Salary
 UK graduates also tend assumptions on
Communication Arrogant to do well during returnees.
. interviews. Thus, the
aim is to help them get  UK values and
UK returnees UK returnees the call for interview by culture is not as well
English breaking employers‟ known in China.
Lack of awareness
pre-assumptions Unlike US (movies,
International Vague imagery dramas) or German
perspective  Internship experiences (Cars)
Salary is highly sought after
Work independently  UK graduates lack
Adaptive capability  Barriers to entry within
Professional skill unique selling point.
Self motivation MNC are lower.
They are mainly
Work planning  Perception of overseas
Teamwork known to be very
Time management graduates improves good in English.
with Interaction.

8. Students tell us … (alumni survey in 2012)
• The top advantages of UK qualifications are creative ways of
thinking, global perceptions and experience, as well as cross-
cultural communication skills and the language capability
• 95% of the alumni found a job within six months after their return
to China, among which 75% spent less than 3 months on job
seeking
• 65% of the alumni agreed that compared with their previous job,
the salary of the first job after their return increased
• The top 3 industries that UK alumni are working in include
business, IT and information services, and media and
advertisement. In addition, creative arts and culture,
education, and energy are becoming more popular compared
with that in 2011

9. Alumni UK Networks in China
• A network of over 30,000 members
- Stay in touch with or search for fellow UK alumni
- Develop and expand your career opportunities
- Tailor-made events throughout the year exclusively for you
- Stay connected with UK culture and education
• Free registration: www.alumniuk.org.cn
• Follow us on like UK Alumni Relations Network
• Follow us on @留英校友会AlumniUK

10. Alumni activities in China
• Professional networking events
- Entrepreneurship workshop
- Social networking events (arts-themed)
- SNS online campaign
• Career development events
- Career development workshop
- Mini job fair
All events & career information available:
www.alumniuk.org.cn

11. UK Outward Mobility - GENERATION UK
• Position the UK as a leader and innovator in global student
mobility and experience
• Boost global employability skills of UK students by broadening
their horizons and creating opportunities for UK students to
understand rising economies such as China
• Encourage links between UK-China education institutions and
business/enterprise to develop sustainable mobility programmes
involving global learning, work experience and cross- cultural
understanding etc.

12. Generation UK
• Generation UK students campaign
- Communication campaign (online/offline)
- Academic & internship scholarships
- Student Forum
• Institutional partnerships
- UK Career Advisor Mission to China in March 2013

13. Introduction to Workshop
• To gain an understanding of current employment
market in China;
• To learn about Chinese employers‟ needs and
expectations;
• To gain practical knowledge of the recruitment
strategy of employers and internship opportunities in
China

14. Speakers
• Dr Lin Lei, HR Director, Microsoft Corporation, Asia-
Pacific R&D Group
• Dr Jenny Yan, Senior Director of HP University, HP
China
• Mr Philip Zheng, Senior HR Director, Baidu.com
• Mr Zhang Young, Senior HR Manager, Epson China

15. Thank you and enjoy the session!
Jazreel.Goh@britishcouncil.org.cn