Youngsters take up legal challenge
Show sees candidates compete for their dream job at a prestigious Shanghai law firm, Chen Nan reports.
Internships are invaluable for students and individuals with little or no work experience. However, when they involve competing with peers and facing the possibility of being — for want of a better term — fired, at any time, in front of a TV camera, it can also be very stressful and scary.
This is challenge faced by 10 Chinese job-seekers, all in their 20s, as they battle to win their dream job at leading law firm Junhe in Shanghai as part of the reality show, Exciting Offer 2, produced by Tencent Video.
The show starts with interviews conducted by four veteran lawyers from the company, who later guide the competitors and decide the final winners. The candidates experience several rounds of competition that show their capabilities as a lawyer. The 10-episode series premiered on Nov 11, and ended last week.
On Jan 13, competitors gathered in an online meeting, reflecting upon their experiences from the show and sharing their working stories.
One of the three eventual winners was 23-year-old Zhan Qiuyi, who stood out among her peers and won a job offer from the law firm.
“The audiences gave me the nickname ‘rabbit’, because I was very quiet and careful in the beginning of the show. I can still recall the moment when I stepped into the office, I got nervous,” says Zhan. “I spent a month working at the law firm, which was an amazing experience. I learned to run around in heels when I was going to be late for work. I learned the importance of buying eye cream, because of the all-night working that was sometimes required. Most importantly, however, I learned to communicate with colleagues and I gained confidence, enabling me to speak my ideas out loud.”
Born and raised in Northeast China’s Dalian, Liaoning province, Zhan graduated from China University of Political Science and Law with a bachelor’s degree in law in 2019. From 2019 to 2020, she studied at the law school of Georgetown University, the United States, where she gained her master’s degree.
A year ago, while studying in the
US, she watched the first season of
Exciting Offer.
“A year later, I was featured in the same reality show, which was totally beyond my expectations,” says Zhan.
The reality show has garnered lots of fans, not least because it shows how the younger generation behaves after graduating from universities. The statistics show that topics related to the reality show have been viewed by a large number of people on the internet since the show’s second season premiered in November.
Hot topics, such as dealing with the relationships between employees, their bosses and their colleagues in the workplace, as well as
luoci, or “naked resignation”, referring to quitting one’s job before being offered new employment, are explored in the reality show.
One of the competitors, Ding Hui, didn’t get a final offer from the law firm, but still won a fan base.
He quit his last job to pursue a position at Junhe. At 29, Ding obtained his master’s degree from East China University of Political Science and Law with a major in law in 2019. Unlike his peers, before he pursued his study in law, Ding graduated from a less well-known university in Changshu, Jiangsu province, where he got his bachelor’s degree in culture industry management.
“I had different jobs before I figured out what I want to do. I want to share my experience with more young people, who may not have an attractive resume,” says Ding.
“There are young Chinese people in the show displaying their abilities and their personalities. Many viewers of their age may face similar situations in the workplace and can learn from them,” says Wang Xinxuan, producer of Exciting Offer 2, in an interview with Chinese website, Sina. The producer adds that over 10,000 people applied for the reality show, some of whom are overseas students hoping to find job opportunities back in China. Besides Ding, all the candidates have no previous work experience, Wang says.
Last year, the number of college graduates hit a record 8.74 million. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, many overseas Chinese students returned to China to find work, which will make this year’s job market much more competitive.
“With the show, we want to offer help for graduates to deal with difficulties and stress in their workplaces,” Wang says.
With the show, we want to offer help for graduates to deal with difficulties and stress in their workplaces.”
Wang Xinxuan, producer of Exciting Offer 2