A middle school in eastern China has sparked debate about the country’s obsession with “elite” universities. Photo: ShutterstockA middle school in China has become the centre of a debate about society’s “worship” of high-ranking universities.
Suzhou Middle School is a well-known school in Jiangsu province. It recently announced that it had hired 13 teachers.
Ten of the new hires had attended China’s two most prestigious universities: Tsinghua University and Peking University.
All the candidates had completed postgraduate degrees, and eight had received doctorates.
The school’s decision to hire from elite universities has proved controversial. Some say it shows employers’ growing likelihood to focus more on the name of the school a candidate attended than their actual skills.
“Academic qualifications and teaching ability are different things,” one critic said.
Suzhou Middle School’s hiring policy also shows a growing willingness among China’s elite graduates to take jobs in the school system.
Experts say this is most common in wealthy parts of China, as schools in these areas can offer better pay packages.