A fresh graduate in China has turned himself into a walking advertisement by printing his resume on a T-shirt, delighting online observers.
Song Jiale, 21, recently earned a bachelor’s degree from Wuhan University’s School of Geomatics in Hubei province, central China.
Before starting his postgraduate studies, Song sought an internship but was unsuccessful despite numerous applications.
Taking inspiration from elderly locals in his hometown in Henan province in central China, who often walk around with advertising signs, Song came up with the idea of printing his resume on a T-shirt.
“With so many people on the streets, I am like a walking billboard, bound to be noticed by employers and HR professionals,” Song wrote on Xiaohongshu, China’s Instagram.
On its front, his T-shirt reads, “Class of 2024 looking for work, please see the back.”
On the back is a copy of his CV, which includes his name, university, major degree subject, student activities and internships.
He also cleverly placed a QR code over his photo for easy contact.
It says next to the QR code, “HR people who are impressed, and any fellow graduates looking to network, just scan this!”
“Finding a job is as hard as finding a partner, let’s help each other out,” the message adds.
Sporting his CV T-shirt, Song travelled by train from his hometown back to Hubei.
Although his eye-catching outfit did not land him a job immediately, it did spark a number of conversations with curious fellow passengers.
It also gained him viral attention on mainland social media after a passer-by posted his picture online, attracting about 385,000 views on Douyin.
The attention led to multiple companies reaching out to him.
In the end, Song found an internship with a company in the running apparel industry.
The viral post may have been a key factor in his acceptance.
“As soon as I got to the company for my job interview, a staff member raised her phone and asked: ‘Is this you?’” Song said on Xiaohongshu.
Online observers lauded Song as a talent in social media marketing.
“You should work in the social media field,” one person said.
“I wish he could join our company, don’t you see how good he is at creating viral content? He is a real talent,” said another.
China’s job market has become increasingly challenging.
This year, 11.58 million new university graduates entered the job market, 820,000 more than last year, and the unemployment rate for young people aged 16 to 24 soared above 18 per cent.
