Chen Chenggong’s family back in Ningde, Fujian province, has always been proud of his accomplishments. The 22-year-old graduate of Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture is the first in his hometown to enter a college in Beijing.

陈成功的老家在福建省宁德市，他一直是家里人的骄傲。今年22岁的他刚从北京建筑大学毕业，是他们老家第一个考到北京的大学生。

However, Chen still finds that the white-collar lifestyle remains far out of reach.

不过陈成功发现白领生活还是遥不可及。

“I was raised to believe a college degree was a sure route to a comfortable life. But after months of searching for a job, I only receive offers with salaries lower than what factory workers earn. It’s as if I never went to college at all,” he said.

“我从小就被灌输上了大学就能过上好日子的思想。但是找了几个月的工作，我只找到了一些比工厂工人的工资还低的工作。这样算起来大学是白念了，“他说。

It is a dilemma echoed by other rural and small town students. Once graduation rolls around, they face more difficulties climbing up the social ladder than their urban peers.

这是农村和小城镇学生面临的困境。一旦临近毕业，他们登上更高社会阶层的难度比城市同龄人大得多。

According to a 2014 report from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the unemployment rate among college graduates from urban families is about 12 percent, while for graduates from rural backgrounds it’s 30 percent.

2014年中国社会科学院的一项报告显示：城市家庭出生大学的毕业生的失业率为12%，而来自农村的大学毕业生失业率为30%。

A separate 2014 report by the China Youth & Children Research Center points out a similar gap between small town and urban graduates.

2014年另一份由中国青少年研究会提供的报告指出小城镇和城市毕业生之间也有类似的差距。

Roadblocks to success

成功不易

This gap is one of the clearest expressions of the hardening barriers to social mobility, according to Tian Feng, the report’s lead researcher. She explains social mobility as a person’s ability to move from one class to another.

该报告的首席研究者田丰认为，这种差距恰好是社会流动性降低的表现之一。她将社会流动性解释为人从一个阶层流动到另一个阶层的能力。

“The current social mobility in China is low. Many urban graduates, with their well-off parents’ social networking, have a better chance to secure a decent job. Their family’s already privileged social status is quickly passed on to the next generation in this form,” she said.

“当前中国的社会流动性很低。许多城市毕业生凭借父母的人脉关系有机会找到体面的工作。通过这种方式，他们家庭享有的社会特权很快就能传递给下一代，“她说。

While this trend could easily be dismissed as only affecting individuals, it actually has a major impact on social equity on the macro level, said Liu Jingming, a professor of sociology at Tsinghua University.

清华大学社会学系教授刘精明认为：如果只是某些个体受到影响，这种风气很容易被打破，但事实上它已经从宏观层面影响了社会平等。

“Low social mobility will ultimately result in class solidification. When that happens, not only will individuals have little chance to move up the social pyramid, their offspring will also be less likely to end up in a different class, enjoying better social resources and opportunities,” he said.

“低社会流动性最终会导致阶层固化。一旦阶层固化，不仅个人没有机会爬到社会金字塔的上端，他们的后代也将无法实现阶层流动，享受更好的社会资源和机会，“他说。

Though he has met difficulties, Chen doesn’t lose faith in his future. And he finally gets a job at a Beijing-based architecture design institute.

尽管陈成功面临不少困难，但他并未丧失对未来的信心。最终他获了了北京某建筑设计研究院的工作。

“Compared to previous generations, I’ve already gotten the chance to experience the world outside of our village. I got to know all sorts of information online. And I also made my own connections,” he said.

“和上一辈比，我有机会看到我们村子之外的世界。我能从互联网上学到知识。我也能建立自己的社会关系，“他说。

Different mind set

换种思路

Li Chunling, a professor of sociology at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, encourages all graduates to share that kind of resilient spirit.

中国社会科学院社会学研究所研究员李春玲鼓励所有的毕业生保持乐观的精神。

She attributes the disadvantages of coming out of small towns and rural areas to the lack of socialization. It can be remedied in college and later in life, as students broaden their horizons, develop their own social networks and pick up social skills they once lacked.

她将出生农村地区和小城镇的弊端归结为缺乏社交资源。只要学生开阔了眼界，发展出自己的社交网络，学会了他们缺乏的社交技能，这是可以在大学和未来生活中弥补的。

“Our research has shown that the rural-urban employment gap mainly exists in the first two years after graduation,” she said.

“我们的研究显示农村和城市毕业生就业率差距主要集中在毕业的头两年，“她说。

Students with rural backgrounds have their advantages too. “They are tough and have a lot of perseverance, which can help them in bridging that gap,” she said.

农村背景的学生也有他们的优势。“他们更坚韧，更有毅力，这是他们填平差距的法宝，“她说。