Where young people go has always been regarded as the vane of industrial development. Recruitment agency data show that the willingness of college graduates to work in the manufacturing industry continues to increase. Many manufacturing enterprises have received a significant increase in the number of graduate resumes, and some advanced manufacturing enterprises have become the “cake” in the job market.

Why do young people switch from “leaving manufacturing” to “joining manufacturing”? What are the industrial changes and changes behind the tide of talent flow?

Aiming at “high precision”, manufacturing has become a new choice for college students

On October 25, the largest graduate job fair in Shanghai in autumn was held at Shanghai Second Polytechnic University. Nearly half of the 1,325 recruiters were high-tech enterprises, attracting about 25,000 graduates to seek jobs. In the areas of state-owned assets and “specialized and special new”, a long line formed in front of each company’s booth. “Mainly running on behalf of the future of sunrise industries, scientific and creative enterprises, more potential, salary is also good.” Xiao Yuan, a third-year student majoring in energy and materials at Shanghai Second Polytechnic University, sent out multiple resumes and completed the first interview with a favorite company on the spot.

Like the whole country, the number of college graduates in Shanghai in 2024 will continue to increase. Under pressure, many graduates choose to start early, open up the road, and focus more on cutting-edge industries and high-tech fields.

According to Liepin big data, as of the end of April, among the ten industry tracks with the fastest growth in the number of graduates delivered in 2023, intelligent manufacturing, AIGC (generative artificial intelligence) and AI large model ranked the top three, with year-on-year growth of 303.12%, 297.27% and 235.25% respectively.

From the change of the proportion of the delivery industry, the Internet and real estate industries decreased from 28.92% and 12.86% in 2021 to 19.39% and 7.85% in 2023. Machinery manufacturing rose from 4.47% in 2021 to 9.14% in 2023, with the most obvious upward trend among the 15 industries.

Zhang Bo, director of the employment guidance service center of Xidian University, told reporters that 1,266 graduates of the school in 2023 entered the manufacturing industry, accounting for 26.64%, the highest value in history.

The “new air mouth” of the industry opens up new space for employment

Some young people “go from virtual to real”, both in the face of fierce employment competition transformation and adjustment, but also have the recognition and expectation of the development prospect of digital intelligence in the manufacturing industry.

“Graduates are increasingly favored and willing to increase employment, is advanced manufacturing, strategic emerging industries, especially new energy, integrated circuits, industrial automation and other industries of the head of enterprises.” In these industries and enterprises, compared with traditional manufacturing, they want to go to digital workshops and smart factory construction, management, operation and maintenance related positions.” Liepin vice president put Ran said.

In the past two years, China has continued to promote the construction of a manufacturing power, and investment in high-tech manufacturing has maintained double-digit growth. In the view of Zhan Ran, a number of high-tech and resilient new industries such as electrical machinery, automobiles, electronic and communication equipment have emerged, and many young people have seen new employment options and new space for development.

Ma Fuhai, deputy general manager of human resources Department of Xi ‘an Longi Green Energy Technology Co., LTD., a leading enterprise, introduced: “The company’s performance continues to grow rapidly, and the demand for employees, especially engineers, continues to increase. More than 9,000 students will be recruited for the class of 2023, an increase of 50 percent over last year.”

While generating new growth points of employment, the good salary and career prospects brought by new industries, new technologies and new models have also made many young people “excited”.

According to Liepin big data, among the 10 new tracks with the largest number of recruits, 8 recruit 2023 graduates with an average annual salary of more than 150,000 yuan; The three tracks with the highest “gold content”, intelligent manufacturing, AIGC, and AI large model, have an average annual salary of 338,200 yuan, 303,600 yuan, and 279,900 yuan, respectively.

In the context of the construction of nearly 10,000 digital workshops and smart factories in China, some young people’s impressions of manufacturing are also changing.