graduates are being “sought after”, with many positions competing for one person. why is this major so popular?
2024-09-09
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multiple positions are competing for one graduate, why are the first batch of undergraduate students majoring in nursing so popular?
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this year, the first batch of undergraduate students majoring in elderly care graduated and were "snatched" by many elderly care institutions. through learning and practice that meets market demand, these "young elderly care workers" have a solid professional foundation and practical ability, achieving a seamless transition from campus to work.
on september 3, shandong women's university welcomed the registration of freshmen of class 2024. the school's highly-anticipated nursing major also welcomed a group of "newbies". the two majors of nursing service management and health service and management welcomed a total of 473 new undergraduate students.
in october 2019, the ministry of education and seven other departments jointly issued a document to encourage and guide ordinary undergraduate colleges and universities to set up nursing-related majors such as home economics and geriatric medicine.
in september 2020, shandong women's college and shanghai university of engineering science became the first undergraduate colleges in the country to set up nursing service-related majors and recruit students that year. this summer, nearly 100 undergraduate students majoring in nursing care graduated from the two schools and were "snatched" by many nursing homes.
these graduates who enter the elderly care industry with vigor and vitality are also called "youth caregivers". what are their employment and career development prospects? how to cultivate more new forces for the elderly care industry? the reporter conducted an interview on this.
more than 400 positions for 64 graduates
during the graduation season, shandong women's university held a job fair, where 35 nursing homes and companies provided more than 400 jobs, including nursing home managers and social workers, to 64 undergraduate graduates of nursing service management from shandong women's university.
on may 9, shandong women's university held a job fair for graduates majoring in elderly care management. (photo source: shandong women's university)
the situation where the number of positions far exceeds the number of graduates also occurred at the special employment and internship job fair for the elderly care service management major held by shanghai university of engineering science.
it is understood that these elderly care institutions and companies have adopted various strategies to attract graduates to work here. some companies have developed new positions such as caregivers and elderly assessors and provided clear career development paths; some institutions offer competitive salaries in the industry and promise to provide comprehensive insurance benefits; and some companies emphasize their unique corporate culture and comfortable working environment.
mr. meng, head of the human resources department of a health care institution in yanqing district, beijing, told reporters that the current imbalance between talent supply and demand is a common problem faced by the elderly care industry across the country. among them, young professional talents are particularly lacking. "the current demand for elderly care services is diversified and high-quality, which puts forward higher-level requirements for elderly care service talents."
in mr. meng's opinion, the first batch of undergraduate students majoring in elderly care services are favored because they have rich knowledge and high professional quality, and are more familiar with advanced elderly care technologies and equipment. as the elderly's requirements for quality of life increase, young elderly care service talents can not only provide basic care, but also share new knowledge and meet their spiritual needs.
mr. meng believes that it is easy for young college students to establish a close and trusting relationship with the elderly because "when the elderly see young people, they will think of their grandchildren and naturally feel a sense of intimacy."
achieve seamless transition from campus to workplace
"there are many more recruiting companies and positions than i thought, and the positions involve the entire chain of the elderly care industry." as the first undergraduate graduate of elderly care services, lin manqing from shandong women's college finally chose to work in a well-known elderly care community in shandong.
different from vocational education which focuses on training nursing service personnel in the elderly care industry, the undergraduate major of elderly care service management focuses on training talents who are competent for the operation and management of elderly care institutions. the reporter learned that the reason why these undergraduate graduates chose this major was mainly because they were optimistic about the "sunrise industry" of elderly care, believing that it had good development prospects and that they could find room for development in it.
at the beginning of this year, half a year before graduation, chen xiao, the first undergraduate student of the elderly care service management major at shandong women's college, received an "olive branch" from a health care company where she had interned. the conditions offered by the company were very attractive: she would be in a management position upon joining the company, and the salary would be excellent. after participating in several job fairs, chen xiao received four job offers. after careful consideration, she finally decided to join a chain health care company in qingdao.
"our goal is to enable students to achieve a seamless transition from campus to the workplace," said yan xiaohong, dean of the school of social sciences and law at shandong women's university.
liu shasha, a graduate of shandong women's college majoring in elderly care management, believes that her professional courses are very practical, with discussions as the main form of teaching, and teachers never read from textbooks. in her sophomore class, she participated in a discussion on the safety protection of the elderly. during her internship, she applied the knowledge she learned in class to her work and proposed to the internship unit "installing double-layer handrails against the wall in the lobby" and other suggestions for safety protection measures for the elderly.
it is reported that in order to improve students' practical ability, shandong women's university has established cooperative relationships with many elderly care companies to provide students with internship opportunities and enhance their practical experience.
at shanghai university of engineering science, under the arrangement and coordination of professional teachers, students start internships in nursing homes from their freshman year, starting with basic nursing positions and gradually transitioning to operations management positions, so as to understand how the entire institution operates.
yang jin (right), a student majoring in elderly care management at the school of management of shanghai university of engineering science, is interning at the elderly service center. (photo source: shanghai university of engineering science)
from "recruiting" to "staying"
it is reported that among the first batch of undergraduate students majoring in elderly care service management at these two universities, most students chose to stay in the elderly care industry.
although a relatively high proportion of students are willing to join the elderly care industry, the problem of talent retention still exists. mr. meng said frankly that in his company, more than half of the young people leave within two years. "high mobility and attrition rate are long-term challenges facing the elderly care industry."
in addition to high work intensity and low social recognition, the psychological gap caused by insufficient understanding of the industry is also an important factor affecting the retention rate of young people.
to address this issue, shandong women's university is committed to deepening students' understanding of the elderly care industry and improving their professional qualities.
in terms of talent training programs, shandong women's university has conducted a lot of market research and formulated talent training programs based on job skill requirements in the elderly care industry. subsequently, it actively sought cooperation with relevant companies, and from the development of teaching materials to the construction of online training courses, the companies were deeply involved to ensure that the teaching content met the needs of the companies.
yan xiaohong said: "during the students' stay at school, we help them develop a deep understanding of the needs of the elderly through teaching activities and practical projects, and cultivate their professional sentiments of respecting, caring for and helping the elderly."
chen xiao said that in one class, the teacher brought a wearable hemiplegia nursing simulation device and a wearable elderly action simulation device to help students better understand the physical and mental state of the elderly. "after wearing the device, it was difficult to move. i fell down the stairs accidentally, and i felt irritable and helpless." chen xiao described his feelings after wearing the simulation device.
"this teaching method helps to increase students' empathy for the elderly, understand their service needs, and cultivate their attentiveness and patience, so that they can provide more humane services to the elderly at work." said chen shujun, director of the teaching and research section of the elderly care service management major at shandong women's college.
"from the perspective of the career development paths provided by employers, young college students who are caring, down-to-earth and hard-working will have the opportunity to get promoted after working for two to three years," mr. meng believes.
(reporter tian guolei, correspondent ji xiang)
source: china workers network
