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ERROR: type should be string, got "https://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2014/08/07/meet-chinas-boomerang-kids-one-third-of-graduates-still-rely-on-parents-survey-says/\nChina Real Time Report\nMeet China’s Boomerang Kids: One-Third of Graduates Still Rely on Parents, Survey Says\nAug 7, 2014 7:08 pm HKT\nGraduates wear their bachelor's costumes while taking a commemoration photo in front of a university in Shanghai.\nAgence France-Presse/Getty Images\nCaught amid a glut of job applicants fresh out of college, many of China’s newly minted graduates are choosing a time-worn path the world over: relying on their parents for hand-outs.\nAccording to a new survey conducted by Peking University, more than one-third of recent Chinese graduates continue to live off their parents.\nA still-greater number are failing to save any money, the survey found, with 40% reporting that they live paycheck to paycheck.\nThe survey, which covered some 350,000 respondents, found that students graduating nationwide this year had an average monthly salary of 2,443 yuan ($396) -- approximately enough to buy half of an iPhone in China, as the Beijing Youth Daily put it. The figure marked an increase of 324 yuan from the previous year. In big cities such as Beijing, figures were slightly higher, with recent graduates commanding an average starting salary of 3,019 yuan.\nPart of the problem for graduates is that despite China’s booming economy, there’s a persistent mismatch between the skills needed on the job market and the ones taught in schools. In recent years, many college students have joked—accurately—that their starting salaries are often lower than that of migrant workers. Over the past decade, China has embarked on a college-building spree that has seen many vocational schools turned into four-year colleges, a boom fueled by rising incomes that have enabled more families to finance such degrees. This year, more than 7 million students graduated across the country with college degrees and expectations to match—creating a thundering level of competition among jobseekers.\nAccording to Peking University’s survey, among different jobs for graduates, the highest-paying ones include hotel managers and logistics professionals, while lower-paid workers included those doing car repairs or management in the tourism industry.\nMore In Graduates\nChina's University Graduates Dismissing Home-Ownership Dreams, Report Says\nPhoto Essay: In China, Wedding Gowns Aren't Just For Weddings\nIn Taiwan, Foxconn Sparks Debate Over College Grad Salaries\nDon't Turn Your Nose Up at Noodle-Making, Chinese Grads Told\nFor China's Jobseekers, Multinational Companies Lose Their Magic\n“I’m pretty satisfied with my salary,” said Bao Jiali, who graduated this year from the Hubei University of Economics and currently works in Guangdong as a marketing professional making 3,800 yuan a month. “After all, I’ve just graduated and don’t have experience, and the company has to spend money to train me.”\nSome of her classmates, she says, rely on their parents for funds for food or rent. “But that isn’t ‘devouring the elderly,’” she said, using a common Chinese expression denoting those who stay dependent on their parents for too long. “Right now, the pressures that come with looking for a job are quite significant.”\nThe survey also found that a gender pay gap existed even for those fresh out of university, with male graduates getting starting salaries that on average are 389 yuan higher than those of their female counterparts.\nA number of recent graduates interviewed by China Real Time said they were surprised at average starting salary levels, particularly in Beijing. “3,000 yuan in Beijing essentially isn’t enough to live,” said one recent graduate surnamed Xue currently working in accounting for a monthly 6,000 yuan salary. “The rent here is all really expensive,” she said.\nStill, Chen Lin, currently working as an education trainer in Chongqing, said she had no complaints about her 3000-yuan monthly salary. “Everyone’s pressure is intense,” she said, adding that her friends without jobs are continuing to pound the pavement in search of opportunities.\nWhile China’s official unemployment rate is a low 4%, economists agree that the government statistic – which almost never fluctuates – is a poor measure of the reality on the ground.\n“Those who don’t want to face the pressure of finding a job decide to go abroad or earn a higher degree,” she added.\n--Te-Ping Chen and Ma Si. Follow Te-Ping on Twitter at @tepingchen\nAlso popular on China Real Time now:\nDeath Sentences in Chinese Gangland Case Upheld\nBeijing Hopes to Keep Skies Bluer for Regional Forum\nPrevious International Students Pressure USC After Chinese Student's Fatal Beating Next Chinese Lawyer Gao Zhisheng Released From Prison; Now What?\nSHOW CONVERSATION HIDE CONVERSATION\nMeet China's Boomerang Kids: One-Third of Graduates Still Rely on Parents, Survey Says"