Examinees of the national civil servant test wait to enter an examination site in Hefei, Anhui Province on Sunday. Photo: CFP

"Since I started college, I have always thought I should apply to be a civil servant. But when I start looking for a job in September, I realized it may not be my only choice," Chen Jun, a second year master's student at the Renmin University of China told the Xinhua News agency.

With increasing choices among private enterprises, many of which provide better salaries and career prospects, and more interesting jobs, Chen instead chose to join a Beijing-based Internet company, instead of the "iron bowl" of a traditional civil service position.

Debate has become heated over whether one of China's most sought-after jobs has lost its luster among young people, especially after this year's exam saw the lowest number of applications in five years. 

Losing its appeal

Dubbed the "iron rice bowl", civil service jobs have long been a favorite choice of graduates seeking a stable career with generous benefits and a steady salary.

The 2012 statistics showed that 76.4 percent of China's college graduates want to be a civil servant, much higher than in other countries, according to a report by Xinhua.

The report went on to say that in Singapore only 2 percent of graduates sought government employment, while the number in the US was 3 percent, and in France it was a little more than 5 percent. In the UK, civil service is one of the 20 least-favored jobs among university students.

As for China, the national civil service exam, a test all applicants for civil service must take, has been one of the nation's most competitive tests since its introduction in 1984.

This year, about 900,000 people sat the national civil service exam on November 30, a decrease from 1.12 million last year, according to the State Administration of Civil Service.

That was despite an increase in the number of open positions: 22,000 instead of last year's 19,000.

This year's exam was less competitive than recent years, as there were on average only 64 applicants competing for one job, while the ratio last year was about 72:1, and 134:1 in 2011.

China's sweeping anti-corruption campaign has been one of the most widely-speculated reasons for declining applications.

In a recent online poll by the China Youth Daily, 51.6 percent of respondents said anti-corruption policy is the most important reasons for the decline, higher than any other options. 

"The decline in applications is linked to the central government's eight-point rules and the crackdown on corruption. The government has increased transparency for civil servants' job requirements and salaries, and got rid of some 'hidden benefits'. The public has got a better idea of what [civil service jobs entail]," Li Chengyan, an anti-corruption expert at Peking University said.

Since taking office in 2012, Chinese President Xi Jinping has led a sweeping campaign against official graft and extravagance, overseeing some of the nation's highest-profile arrests of corrupt officials.

The "hidden benefits" of being an official, including lavish banquet meals and government-sponsored stays in luxury hotels, have been on the decline since the central government issued an eight-point rules in 2012 to reduce official extravagance and boost the government's public image. 

Raising the bar

Some others argued it is not that the job has lost its appeal, but that raising the bar has discouraged underqualified applicants.

"I wanted to apply to be a civil servant. But the requirements are too high [now], and there are not many choices that suit me," wrote one commentator online.

An official at the State Administration of Civil Service has said that the media has begun to analyze the nature of civil service jobs more objectively as the government has provided more detailed requirements and job descriptions for open positions, reported the People's Daily. These factors have helped tamp down expectations among applicants blindly applying for civil service jobs. 

Most positions open this year in government agencies above the provincial level required two years of grassroots working experience, according to Xinhua, while some require specific academic qualifications in areas like architecture and civil engineering.

The official added that the authorities have also tightened rules stipulating that any applicants absent from the exams without a valid reason will be recorded in government databases, reducing the number of frivolous applications.

Undesirable working environments are reportedly another major cause of the decrease in applicants.

Entry-level positions or jobs that involve working in rural areas accounted for 76 percent of the positions open to applicants taking this year's national civil service exams, according to news portal news.qq.com.

Many of the jobs on offer have harsh working conditions, require frequent business trips or require night shift work, which discouraged many job-seekers looking for a comfortable working environment.

While some government jobs in more developed areas like Shanghai still saw thousands of applicants, vacancies in less developed northwestern parts of the country attracted fewer applications.

"There's still a huge quality of life gap between the developed urban areas and the poor rural areas of China. Government jobs in these areas usually are less appealing because the conditions are much harsher," said Wang Yan from National Institute of Education Sciences, reported the China Central Television.

Newspaper headline: Civil disservice