By Grace Ng, China Correspondent

BEIJING, CHINA - Getting a university degree used to be seen in China as a golden ticket to a good job and a good life. Now, a vocational diploma may be more lucrative for some.

Take Ms Yang Yanting, who just took the gao kao, or university entrance exams, last week. The relative ease of diploma holders in finding a job, compared to the difficulties faced by university graduates amid the economic slowdown, is making the route seem more attractive for the 18-year-old.

'I'm thinking of learning technical skills at a vocational institute. At least it's cheaper and I'll be assured of a job when I graduate,' she said.

Once considered the dumping ground for students with the poorest grades, vocational schools are getting more attention as data shows that more than 95 per cent of middle vocational school students landed jobs upon graduation last year.

In contrast, more than 12 per cent of college graduates failed to find work, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences estimated.

Monthly salaries for last year's graduates from China's 2,100 'non-elite universities' also slid 11 per cent to an average of 2,000 yuan (S$425), while pay for vocational school graduates dropped just 5 per cent to 1,600 yuan.

This may reflect the preference of some local companies for hiring cheaper graduates during the economic crisis, said Ms Zhu Hongyan, an executive at Beijing employment agency Zhaopin.

Beijing Computer Industry vocational school student Liu Zhongyang, 19, is confident that he will not have a problem getting a job after graduation.

Most of his classmates who graduated found jobs with monthly salaries of between 1,000 yuan and 2,000 yuan in their first year. Those with the best grades are earning 4,000 yuan to 5,000 yuan, he added.

Currently, more than 30 million students go to middle and higher vocational institutions across China; the same number as those attending mainstream high schools and universities.

China is investing more to develop vocational training. Between 2006 and next year, it would have poured 14 billion yuan into the system.

Until recently, the bulk of investments had gone into boosting university education, as China looked to highly educated citizens to upgrade its economy beyond basic manufacturing to tertiary industries.

China's universities have boosted enrolment by as much as 30 per cent a year over the last decade, reaching 21.5 million last year. But this year, there was a sharp drop in applicants for the gao kao.

Shandong province, for instance, reported a drop of 100,000 applicants, to 700,000. Shanghai saw a nearly 20 per cent drop to 83,000, said Xinhua news agency. Enrolment at vocational schools rose to 8.6 million this year from 8.1 million last year.

The contrast reflects not just the impact of the downturn, it also hints at the shifting attitudes towards vocational education, said headhunters.

With 6.12 million new college graduates pouring into the job market next month to compete for work with the 920,000 who have been unemployed since last July, some parents are rethinking their bias against vocational schools.

'Now I don't think a vocational education is not as good or shameful,' said Ms Xiao Weihong, whose 18-year-old son Wang Nuoya will take his university entrance exams next year. 'The real loss of face is when the graduate cannot find a job!'

This article was first published in The Straits Times.