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

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

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)

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

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

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

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

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: Follow us on like UK Alumni Relations Network Follow us 留英校友会 AlumniUK

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:

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.

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

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

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

Thank you and enjoy the session!