Neither Fair nor Efficient, but More Elitist: Meritocracy in Chinese Petroleum Firms’ Graduate Recruitment and Selection

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis paper examines the concept and practice of meritocracy in Chinese national oil corporations’ (NOCs) graduate recruitment and selection. It focuses on the post-2008 NOC reform period, which sees NOCs place increasing rhetorical emphasis on meritocratic or ‘fair’ recruitment and selection. However, this paper argues that, in practice, these sentiments remain unrealized. The NOCs continue to use some sub-optimum applicant assessment measures and misuse or misunderstand the more optimum ones. Likewise, the prioritization of certain criteria, such as elite education, has merely advantaged graduates with strong Bourdieu capitals. Hence, this produces a flawed meritocracy that neither maximizes fairness nor efficiency, but strengthens elitism. Moreover, its capacity to serve political interests is questionable too. These insights, then, enhance existing academic debates over China’s engagement with meritocracy.