Want to Work at the Forbidden City? Get Your Master's First

原创 Irene Li theBeijinger

收录于合集

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In case you were wondering where a graduate degree could take you, it can certainly get you places, one of them being in the employ of the Forbidden City! In fact, more than half of the staff who work there hold at least a master's degree or above.

It is called the Forbidden City for a reason

It surely isn't easy to become a member of the Forbidden City club. According to a job information form for 2022 Graduates of the Palace Museum, the recruitment involves 18 positions with a total of 34 people each, including research and protection of ancient architectural heritage, cultural industry management, publicity and education, and project management.

All the things you can find at the Palace Museum Franchise Store

But the selection standards are highly exclusive. Eight of the posts require Beijing residency (referring to people who have a Beijing hukou), and 13 posts require graduate degrees or above. Interestingly enough, if you've studied abroad in the past, you're barred from working at the museum.

A royal (chonky) cat of the Forbidden City

The Palace Museum made its first appearance at a college job fair in Beijing in 2012. Since then, the museum has been recruiting fresh graduates every year. But it wasn't until 2016, with the release of the documentary Masters in the Forbidden City (watch trailer for the first episode below), which follows the lives of relic restorers -- and a few cats who call the palace home -- that public interest in working in the Forbidden City grew. The 600-year-old cultural relic has almost become a symbol for young people to live their dreams in the capital. "Who would ever say no to working with a royal cat?" one said. "I wish I could work at the Palace one day!" another said.

But how hard is it for someone to get a job at the Forbidden City? Well, extremely hard. Even if you have already met all the requirements to work at the Palace, to get hired, you still need to pass a written test and an interview.

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One Beijing resident who took the entrance exam for the Palace Museum said that the written tests are quite difficult. She recalled that the 2021 test was divided into two parts. Applicants have to complete 53 questions in 90 minutes. "The trickiest part is you cannot highlight anything on the paper, nor are you allowed to use extra sheets of paper," she told us.

Souvenirs at the Palace Museum Franchise Store

Moreover, these job openings aren't available to everyone. Most positions require candidates to have a post-graduate degree. The positions with the highest educational requirements are business research and ancient construction heritage protection, both of which require a doctorate degree and only require one person per post.

Despite the intense competition to work at the Palace, the number of young people applying has increased rapidly every year since 2016. In 2019, about 40,000 people applied, and only 88 new employees were hired. That sounds like some stiff competition!

The nine-dragon wall at the Palace Museum

You would think that with such a strict selection process, the salary would be pretty high, but that's not even the case. According to one local resident, the standard salary at the Palace Museum is about RMB 7000 per month. Even though it doesn't sound too bad for fresh graduates, it still isn't a lot considering the high living costs in Beijing.

But for some Beijingers, money is not a big factor. "I am from Beijing and I don't have to rent a place. Therefore, I have much less financial pressure," one said on Weibo.