1. Paid job-search services in China are a growing but risky market. Zhou Yue, a Ph.D. graduate in biomedical engineering, paid 41,500 yuan ($6,219) to a career consultancy for a year of assistance including resume preparation, interview coaching and promised referrals to employers such as Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and Huawei. She never got a job, and when she sought a refund, she faced disputes over the company’s performance, contractual obligations, and even the identity of the business she had hired. [para. 1][para. 2]
2. The market has expanded as graduate expectations meet shrinking opportunities. China’s class of 2026 includes 12.7 million graduates, up 480,000 from a year earlier, while 535,600 Chinese students returned from overseas in 2025, up 40,600. Campus recruitment demand has fallen about 40% from its peak, according to the 51job white paper, as companies focus on high-skilled core roles. AI is replacing some entry-level white-collar internships and increasing the importance of AI skills for candidates. Returning overseas graduates face additional barriers, including scheduling conflicts with fall recruitment and weaker local networks. [para. 6][para. 7][para. 8][para. 9]
3. Agencies charge large fees for promised access to major employers. Services for returning graduates typically cost 30,000 to 60,000 yuan, and overseas finance/tech programs can cost $30,000 to $60,000. Some agencies display logos of Google, Microsoft, Apple and JPMorgan without making clear whether formal cooperation exists. One agency, Xingchen Career, claimed a 98% offer rate but declined to provide details. In October, game developer Shanghai Hypergryph publicly stated that agency Hulianpai had used its logo without authorization. [para. 10][para. 11][para. 12]
4. Social media has become a major sourcing channel. Among the class of 2026, 29.5% looked for jobs via Xiaohongshu and Bilibili, up 7 percentage points. Caixin posing as a student received multiple unsolicited offers of paid internships at major companies. Some agencies operate fake accounts posing as overseas students, or use scam-warning posts to steer readers to salespeople. One promoter said her commission was less than 100 yuan per customer. [para. 13][para. 14][para. 15][para. 16]
5. Internships themselves are now sold. About 83% of class of 2026 graduates completed at least one internship, and 26% had three or more, up from about 13% for class of 2023. Agency Haima Zhijia offered Caixin two-month placements at ByteDance, Baidu and ZJS Express for 21,800 yuan, claiming guaranteed placement even without prior experience. Some placements are arranged directly with employees and bypass HR, while registered arrangements can cost thousands more for a certificate with a company stamp. A former accounting-firm employee, Cheng Wei, said he took in paid interns who did not attend work or perform duties, provided certificates describing them as audit interns, and received 2,000 to 3,000 yuan per student from intermediaries while students paid 12,000 yuan. [para. 17][para. 18][para. 19][para. 20][para. 21][para. 22]
6. Companies have repeatedly warned against unauthorized recruitment. Lixin Certified Public Accountants, Tencent, Huawei, JD.com and ByteDance have all issued warnings over three years. Some agencies proposed paying company employees 4,000 to 10,000 yuan per intern placed. At the extreme end, some supposed internships are entirely fabricated: a Guangdong headhunting firm employee said intermediaries rented offices to stage fake internships, and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate disclosed a July case where a gang forged seals and staged sham internships, defrauding over 5,000 students of more than 24 million yuan. [para. 23][para. 24][para. 25]
7. Refunds are extremely difficult. Zhou’s agency initially refused, citing no refund clause. Her resume drafts contained elementary errors, deadlines were missed, and no proof of work was provided. Only after legal threats did the company offer 30% back, but refused to show deduction receipts. Her court case revealed entity confusion: promotional materials named Hangzhou Xingchen Huanzi and U.S. Stars Consulting Group, but her contract listed Xingchen Zhitu as service provider while Xingchen Huanzi received payment. The companies called this normal business practice; her lawsuit was accepted on May 27 with no ruling yet. [para. 26][para. 27][para. 28][para. 29][para. 30][para. 31][para. 32]
8. Legal experts note that exaggerated marketing and failure to meet contractual promises generally amount to breach of contract. Fraud charges require intent to unlawfully obtain money and fabricated facts such as fake job positions. Bribing employees to arrange placements can bring criminal liability. On Oct. 21, five government departments warned against fake recruitment ads and promises of internal referrals or guaranteed hiring, advising jobseekers to verify information via official company channels. [para. 33][para. 34][para. 35]
AI generated, for reference only
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