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Graduates dream of opening their own business

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-08-15 08:58

Two years after graduating from Beijing's prestigious Tsinghua University, 25-year-old Wang Yichen has already owned three fashion accessories stores situated in bustling business areas of the city.

On graduation, Wang, unlike most of her classmates, chose to run her own business instead of applying for a position in a well-known company.

But she is only one of a number who took the risk of going into business on her own account and made it work.

Although about 75 percent of China's college graduates are passionate about running their own businesses, less than 2 percent actually realized their dream, according to a survey published Thursday.

Of businesses set up by college graduates, 23 percent were now operating on a sound basis, nearly half had been closed and the remainder were thinking about changes.

Commissioned by the Ministry of Education, the survey covered nearly 16,000 students in 117 colleges nationwide.

It found imbalances caused by students' lack of hi-tech skills and inadequate support from industries.

In some cases a major setback is opposition from parents.

"I didn't tell my parents for six months that I was running my own business," Wang said. "Even after that, I did not dare tell them I was selling accessories."

The former advertising major admits her original intention was to make money.

"A sense of achievement came second," she said.

Sharing similar goals, Xiong Long was not so lucky. The 20-something tried 30 banks to raise money for his company, the Jiandongfang Cultural Communication Co Ltd, but his plans were nipped in the bud as the first batch of products over-ran delivery time.

"But I've learned more about society and now understand competition and cooperation, which are more valuable than having made money," he said.

Statistics showed China had 5.29 million college graduates in 2008. About 86 percent of them had found employers at the beginning of 2009. Only 1 percent of graduates set up their own businesses.

Related readings:  Jobs elusive to new college graduates  Graduates face the biggest challenge yet  Only 68% of China's new graduates find jobs  China's graduates spend more on job hunting but harvest little

In 2003, as graduates from China's colleges were swelling, the government encouraged that year's more than 2 million graduates to become employed "in flexible ways", by opening their own businesses if necessary.

Lai Desheng, dean of the Beijing Normal University's School of Economics and Business Administration, said that favorable government policies and easier access to service industries had created more opportunities for businesses run by college graduates.

"Economic downturns can also lead to a new wave of private business," Lai said.

But Yu Minhong, founder of the New Oriental English language training school, warned students against haste in decisions to open their own businesses.

He said last week that college graduates should first go into paid employment and open their own businesses two to three years later.

"Chances of success are very slender if they go directly into their own businesses," said Yu, whose teaching business went public in the United States.

He said failures could be caused by inadequate understanding of society and underdeveloped personnel management skills.

"Try to be patient and work it out step by step," he said.